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11/10/2016 | Note for equality

Notes for Equality N°20: Girl children and adolescents and the early construction of gender roles

On the International Day of the Girl Child, it is fundamental to emphasise the need to consolidate specific information and analysis about their situation, to generate evidence for the design of policies that eradicate the barriers that affect girl children and adolescents in order to achieve their autonomy and exercise of rights, and assure their well-being in the present and the future.

One of the critical elements that explains gender inequality in the region relates to the current gender division of labour and the early segmentation of gender roles. Around 2013, 23% of girl adolescents between 15 and 17 years old did not attend school in Latin America (16 countries). Of those, 87% are working, either in the public or private sphere, whether receiving income or not: 54% are dedicated to unpaid care and domestic work and 33% are in remunerated employment. This situation is most prevalent for girl adolescents that live in rural areas and in households in situation of poverty. Between male adolescents of this same age that do not attend school, only 6% are dedicated to unpaid care and domestic work and the majority are inserted in the labour market.