—Ekramul Hasan—

In Bangladesh, 96.6 percent of all employed females are engaged in informal jobs. Although women’s participation in the labour force has increased from 36.3 percent in 2016-17 to 42.7 percent in 2022, it still lags far behind the male labour force participation rate of 80 percent. Female participation in formal and technical jobs remains significantly lower. Most employed female are engaged in agriculture (74.1 percent), while only 8.7 percent work in industry and 17.2 percent in the service sector. Representation of women in managerial positions is also significantly lower, even in industries such as ready-made garment (RMG), where women constitute the majority of the workforce. Additionally, the RMG sector’s employability of women is at risk due to the increasing trend of automation, the Fourth Revolution (4IR) and rising demand for skilled labour. Besides, Bangladesh’s LDC graduation by 2026 may unfavourably impact the RMG sector, leading to reduced exports and diminished opportunities for women in the sector.

In this context, creating more opportunities and exploring untapped sectors, apart from agriculture and RMG, is essential to employ more female workers. Much of the existing research on this topic are focused on supply-side factors, leading towards a biased result. In a SANEM study, “What Drives Female Employment in Contemporary Sectors? Evidence from Bangladesh’s Agro-Processing, Jute, and IT Industries,” we identified this gap and explored demand-side factors impacting female employment and managerial representation in Bangladesh’s agro-processing, jute, and IT sectors.

Two questions were addressed in the study: i) what are the demand-side factors attributing a higher percentage of female employees and how do their effects vary across the sectors?; ii) does ownership type affect gender-based recruitment both in overall employment and employment in high-tier jobs? The SANEM-UNDP-BIDA Enterprise Survey 2024 dataset, which comprises 972 firms—with 228 in agro-processing, 412 in IT and IT services, and 332 in jute and jute products—has been used. The sectors were identified from a pool of 29 sectors based on various parameters, such as domestic and international market size, sector readiness, SME linkage possibility, job creation and job quality.

The study revealed several key insights. Female-owned firms employed significantly more women at both general and managerial levels, which underscores the importance of promoting female entrepreneurship. Larger firms tend to employ more women overall, but size alone does not translate into greater female representation in leadership. While big firms may offer more jobs, cultural and structural barriers often limit women’s access to managerial roles. Agro-processing and jute industries showed higher levels of female employment compared to IT. Technical skill requirements, ingrained gender biases, patriarchal attitudes and perceptions of women’s limited technical capabilities create significant barriers for women in the IT sector.

The study highlighted that firms with a higher share of female employees were more likely to have women in managerial roles. This indicates that fostering an inclusive workforce can lead to cultural shifts that support women’s advancement into leadership positions. However, joint ventures and foreign-owned firms showed a reluctance to promote women to managerial levels, despite hiring them in general roles. This discrepancy calls for targeted efforts to break structural barriers within such organisations. Interestingly, factors like exporter status and international certification—often associated with formalisation—did not significantly boost female employment. This anomaly might stem from the limited export contributions of the analysed sectors compared to RMG, which dominates Bangladesh’s export basket. Nonetheless, it implies that the emerging export-oriented firms face structural challenges or business models less conducive to gender diversity.

The study also found that firms with requirements for a higher share of low-skilled workers are more likely to hire women, which highlights that a lack of skills often pushes women into lower-wage jobs, which tend to have limited upward mobility. In contrast, firms that require a higher share of high-skilled workers slightly increase opportunities for women in leadership positions, as high-skill sectors exhibit fewer gender biases and are more conducive to promoting women.

The findings underline the urgency of strategic interventions to enhance female employment and leadership in Bangladesh. Key recommendations include promoting female entrepreneurship by providing access to credit, mentorship, and training tailored for female entrepreneurs. Addressing the skill gap is crucial, particularly in STEM fields and technical roles. Policies should focus on training programmes that equip women with industry-specific skills, enabling them to participate in high-demand sectors like IT. Tackling patriarchal attitudes and male-centric hiring practices is essential, especially in the IT sector. Awareness campaigns and gender-sensitivity training for employers can help create a more inclusive workplace culture.

Firms should be incentivised to adopt hiring strategies that prioritise gender diversity. For instance, tax benefits or recognition programmes could motivate businesses to employ and promote more women. Encouraging women’s representation in managerial positions is critical for driving workplace inclusivity. Policies should mandate gender diversity at leadership levels, particularly in larger firms and joint ventures. Agro-processing and jute sectors have demonstrated their potential for employing women. Strengthening these industries through investments and supportive policies can further increase female participation.

By addressing structural barriers, challenging gender biases, and fostering skill development, Bangladesh can pave the way for women to thrive in its evolving economy. This transformation will benefit women and also contribute to the vision of sustainable and inclusive development.

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Ekramul Hasan is research associate at South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM). He can be reached at [email protected].