Why we all need to invest in women to become richer

Olga Miler

This week it’s that time again: March 8 is International Women’s Day. The first International Women’s Day took place on March 19, 1911 and was celebrated in Denmark, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Switzerland. The date was later set for March 8 and in 1975 the UN chose it as “United Nations Day for Women’s Rights and World Peace”.

For more than 100 years, the purpose of International Women’s Day has been to highlight the achievements of women and at the same time injustice and discrimination that still exist asking for attention. I don’t know about you, but I have mixed feelings about the fact that we still seem to need this day. This year’s motto is “Invest in women, accelerate progress” which means something like “Invest in women, accelerate progress” is called. Reason enough to take a closer look at what progress has been made and what opportunities exist for all of us.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2023, which looks at 146 countries, current progress It will take 131 years to achieve full equality. Although the global equality gap has been closed to 68.6%, progress has been very slow: since the first edition of the report in 2006, only 4.1% Progress made.

It’s in the report Switzerland of the 146 countries surveyed 21st placeto South Africa and ahead of Estonia and compared to the previous year Lost 8 places. The ranking is led by Iceland, followed by Norway.

Moody’s Analytics (2023) estimates this Closing the gender gap in labor participation and management In OECD countries alone, global economic activity increased by approx 7% or about 7 trillion US dollars (6.1 trillion francs) per year.

One of the greatest economic opportunities is unpaid domestic work and care work. It is estimated that 16 billion hours are spent on unpaid care and domestic work every day worldwide. In Switzerland, the FSO estimates the value of unpaid domestic and care work at approximately 434.2 billion francs, of which women contribute 59.6% of the total value. and especially at unpaid care work with an estimated value of 50.2 billion francs per year (men 31.9 billion) account for the lion’s share.

The income differences between men and women are large in Switzerland. Despite progress in education and economic development women earnwho have the same qualifications as their male colleagues throughout their working lives 43% less (Report on income differences between women and men, 2022). Women therefore also have a 34.6% lower commission.

According to the research by Advance Switzerland and KPMG: The main causes of these income differences are the gender pay gap and delayed career development due to job exits, interruptions and resumption of work.

The costs are high: according to the data, women with tertiary education suffer If you stop working for a year, you will receive a permanent wage reduction of 3%. The study estimates that a career break of six years Women can cost up to 1 million francs.

Closing the gaps and unlocking the economic potential requires all of us and a broad catalog of measures. Here are just some of the ideas that can help:

When investing or spending money, you can consciously set an example for more diversity, tolerance and equality. Here are some ideas to get you started:

To do this, you consciously look for and invest in companies that are sustainably committed to issues such as equality in the workplace, equal pay or diversity. You can invest through individual shares or through funds and certificates. Note that due to the data base, these products often contain a fairly small universe of companies or a high concentration on individual countries. They are therefore more suitable as an addition to your systems.

Companies that specifically address the needs of women and operate in sectors or regions expected to particularly benefit from the Sheconomy’s increasing economic purchasing power offer exciting investment opportunities. While fashion and cosmetics companies may be obvious examples, the real potential lies in areas such as healthcare or healthcare.

Companies founded by women receive only a small share of capital; according to Pitchbook, this amounts to approximately 1.6% of European venture capital investments in Europe. 16.8% goes to mixed teams. Given these low funding options, many female founders are turning to alternative financing methods such as crowdfunding or angel investing. Crowdfunding in particular offers you the opportunity to invest, even with smaller amounts, in various start-ups.

As the various data show, the economic potential of greater equality is clear. Given current progress, International Women’s Day will likely be around for a while. What do you think would most help us as a society to close the gaps and seize the opportunities? What ideas do you have or what are you doing?