Laos: Poverty Falls Most Heavily On Women - Brief Article

WIN News, Spring, 2000

UN WIRE (Jan. 26, 2000): http://www.unfoundation.org

"With 4 million residents living on less than $1 a day as subsistence farmers, Laos faces a heavy burden of poverty - which falls most heavily on women, BBC World Update reports. Laos has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world.

A gender specialist with the UN Development Program says that beginning in childhood, most women miss out on opportunities for a better life. She notes that the school drop-out rate is significantly higher among girls than boys. 'Families still see that it's like putting money in the bank if you send your son to school, and it's not perceived that way if you send your girl child to school,' she explains.

Laos has expanded the political mandate of the Laos Women's Union to include women's rights as a way of encouraging development. The union reaches all levels of society by working with international organizations such as UNICEF. The collaboration with UNICEF has resulted in small-scale development projects such as village rice banks. 'It's made a big difference,' one village banker said. 'Before, we had to travel a long way to beg for rice. The bank is really convenient, it's right in the middle of the village. Anyone who doesn't have enough rice can come and borrow it from here.'

Although small steps are being taken to improve the health and lives of people in Laos, especially for women, BBC reports, the government must solve its current economic crisis and introduce measures to attract investment, which could be used for developing the lives of rural residents."