Vanuatu is a traditional and largely patriarchal society; women have extremely low representation in Parliament and in other decision-making bodies. Despite this, women are increasingly involved in private sector development and in the market economy. Yet government support for women's economic empowerment and for businesswomen has been limited, and reforms are needed to the general legal framework to ensure gender equality. This groundbreaking book, ""Women in Vanuatu"", brings together data and available evidence on the subject and makes the case for actions needed to ensure gender equality. The authors argue that designing and implementing measures that benefit both women and men makes good economic sense and will ultimately strengthen all businesses in Vanuatu. ""Women in Vanuatu"" will be useful to both donors and nongovernmental organizations designing projects as well as researchers looking to further examine gender barriers in the country.

The economic empowerment of women is increasingly seen as one of the most important forces behind economic growth and the fight against poverty. Indeed, women's economic participation in an economy as entrepreneurs, employees, and leaders is recognized as a measure of a country's dynamism and viability. 'Gender Dimensions of Investment Climate Reform' provides fresh solutions to common issues that women entrepreneurs face. It presents actionable, replicable, and scalable tools for promoting gender-sensitive investment climate reforms that would benefit both women and men. The book enables development practitioners and policy makers who are not gender specialists to diagnose gender issues in an investment climate; design creative and practical solutions and recommendations for addressing gender constraints; and monitor and evaluate the implementation of those recommendations.