IMF Staff Country Reports

Italy: Selected Issues

July 23, 2024

Download PDF More Formats on IMF eLibrary Order a Print Copy
More formats on IMF eLibrary Order a Print Copy

Preview Citation

Format: Chicago

International Monetary Fund. European Dept. "Italy: Selected Issues", IMF Staff Country Reports 2024, 241 (2024), accessed November 23, 2024, https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400284052.002

Export Citation

  • ProCite
  • RefWorks
  • Reference Manager
  • BibTex
  • Zotero
  • EndNote

Summary

This Selected Issues paper focuses on the paradox of Italy’s low fertility and low female labor force participation. Within-household allocation of housework tends to be relatively specialized in Italy, and with more limited burden-sharing in households with children. Social and cultural norms are frequently cited as one of the main reasons for Italy’s large time-use gender gaps. With ingrained norms, changing behaviors might be seen as very challenging. Yet Italy’s work-family outcomes have undergone significant shifts within a relatively short time span, most likely in response to large structural changes in the nature of employment contracts and the macroeconomic environment. In Italy, both fertility and female labor force participation lag behind peer countries. The number of births has fallen by a third over the last fifteen years, while female labor force participation remains very low. This uncommon combination points to the need to improve the compatibility of work and family life. Moreover, a large divide exists between Northern and Southern regions, with much lower female labor force participation but a similar fertility rate in the South, suggesting the presence of structural impediments, such as labor market rigidities and scarcity of childcare facilities.

Subject: Credit, Financial institutions, Gender, Gender diversity, Money, Nonperforming loans, Women

Keywords: Credit, Debt servicing cost, Firm profitability, Gender diversity, Gender wage gap, Global, Italy's resilience, Net childcare cost, Nonperforming loans, Simulation result, Women

Publication Details

You May Also Be Interested In...

Sierra Leone: Selected Issues

November 22, 2024

Implementing Risk-Based Solvency for Insurers—Lessons from Kenya, Mexico, and South Africa

November 22, 2024

Intimate Partner Violence and Women’s Economic Empowerment: Evidence from Indian States

November 22, 2024

Bilateral Trade in Services and Exchange Rates: Evidence of Dominant Currency Pricing

November 22, 2024