IMF Working Papers

Effects of IMF-Supported Programs on Gender Inequality

By Theo S. Eicher, Reina Kawai, Monique Newiak

December 6, 2024

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Format: Chicago

Theo S. Eicher, Reina Kawai, and Monique Newiak. "Effects of IMF-Supported Programs on Gender Inequality", IMF Working Papers 2024, 247 (2024), accessed December 11, 2024, https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400294297.001

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Disclaimer: IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.

Summary

Crises often require economic consolidations that may unevenly affect different segments of the population. Some crisis countries enter financial arrangements with the IMF and adopt adjustment programs, and studies have associated program conditionality with negative impacts on gender inequality. Proper evaluations of the impacts of IMF-supported programs on gender inequality require, however, credible control groups that address the counterfactual: do post-crisis gender disparities evolve differently without an IMF-supported program? We examine over 150 IMF-supported programs (1994-2022) using custom-tailored control groups that match each IMF-supported program country’s gender and economic trends and find overwhelming evidence against systematic impacts of IMF-supported programs on gender equality.

Subject: Gender, Gender diversity, Gender inequality, Labor, Labor force participation, Women

Keywords: The, Adolescent Fertility, Economic Crisis, Education, Female Labor Force Participation, Gambia, Gender diversity, Gender inequality, Gender Inequality, IMF-supported programs, Labor force participation, Maternal Mortality, Sierra Leone, Women

Publication Details

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