Promoting Women's Access to Economic Opportunities : Bosnia and Herzegovina

Prospects for faster, more sustainable economic growth and higher living standards in Bosnia and Herzegovina rely on increasing employment opportunities for all. By maintaining the current structure of labor participation, Bosnia and Herzegovina is not capitalizing on its educated young population, as only 22.7 percent of 15-64-year-old women are actively contributing to the economy through employment. Closing gender gaps in access to economic opportunities requires removing the existing barriers and disincentives to employment and entrepreneurship for women. These include: (i) improving access to assets and productive inputs, (ii) providing access to child- and eldercare, (iii) eliminating disincentives and barriers embedded in labor taxation and regulation, and (iv) increasing the employability of women through effective active labor market policies and adequate skills and training. Cross-cutting policies around social norms and discrimination, better access to information, and improved monitoring and evaluation systems are also important