Annotated Bibliographie 2

Sources-

“Afghan Women burn themselves to flee abuse.” RAWA News, 22 November 2009. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.

“Gender inequalities and HIV” Gender, Women and Health. World Health Organization, 2012. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.

“Gender Equality and Female Empowerment Policy” United States Agency International Development, March 2012. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.

“WDR 2012: Gender Equality and Development.” The World Bank, 2012. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.

        RAWA-
           Women in the country of Afghanistan are being tortured and mistreated by their husbands or even their in-laws. These poor women set themselves on fire to escape their violent marriages which make their life miserable. Many of these women are very young in age, some are as young as 17, and they were married at a very earlier age to older men. These women claim when they set themselves on fire it brings peace to their lives that they never had. Many of these women if not all were forced to marry older men. Under the Taliban woman weren't allowed to work or get an education. But even now - eight years after they were overthrown - there's evidence their suffering continues. Women's rights groups say domestic violence and discrimination is common and women usually have no access to the justice system. Divorce is rarely an option in a country where about 80 percent of women are illiterate and often have no knowledge of their rights. Islamic law in Afghanistan also favors men. A wife must prove her husband can't provide for her, is absent for long periods or abuses her to the point where her life is at risk. She also needs witnesses and often his permission to divorce. Even then she's unlikely to keep her children and it's that prospect which drives women like these to seek other more desperate ways to escape.

      World Health Organization-

             HIV has become the top pandemic disease and gender inequality plays a role in the expansion of the epidemic at large. The World Health Organization explains how and why this is a major key driver. For example, the WHO states, “Norms related to femininity can prevent women -especially young women- from accessing HIV information and services.” According to the 2008 UNAIDS global figures, “only 38% of women have accurate, comprehensive knowledge of HIV/AIDS.” This is a very low percent of the world's female population who actually are fully aware and educated of this harsh disease. This is an outcome of the educational gender inequalities that take place in many developing countries still today. Another key drive to this issue is violence against women which could be physical, sexual or emotional. This violence is experienced by 10-60% of women (ages 15-49) worldwide and increases their vulnerability to contracting the disease. For example, by forced sex taking action there could be tears or laceration to the body and which will highly increase the risk of catching HIV.

           USAID-

               Long-term, sustainable development will only be possible when women and men enjoy equal opportunity to  rise to their potential. But today, women and girls continue to face disadvantages in every sector in which we work, while in some cases, boys are falling behind.

In agriculture, women make up more than 40 percent of the labor force, but only represent between 3 to 20 percent of landholders. In Africa, women-owned enterprises make up as little as 10 percent of all businesses—and in South Asia, only 3 percent. And despite representing half the global population, women comprise less than 20 percent of the world’s legislators. If we can erase these inequities—and put women on equal footing with men—we know that we can unlock human potential on a transformational scale. Just by empowering women farmers with the same access to land, new technologies and capital as men, we can increase crop yields by as much as 30 percent and feed an additional 150 million people. For decades, USAID has been leading global efforts to achieve gender equality. While great strides have been made, gender inequality remains a significant challenge across every development initiative worldwide, from education to global health.

         World Bank-

              Gender equality is a worldwide issue because in developing countries women and girls are most likely to experience very harsh moments of life more likely than men or boys. According to The World Bank, “Nearly 4 million women go missing each year in developing countries,''About two fifths of girls are never born due to a preference for sons,''Globally, only 10 to 20 of every 100 land owners is a woman,''A sixth die in early childhood, and over a third die in their reproductive years.” These are realistic outcomes that happen due to the inequality between women and men. They claim that by making a change of gender inequalities, it will help developing countries develop in a faster and healthier way. This is the best choice we have ever taken because it will make a big difference in our world society. We have to make modern day society into its best for the next generations.