Trade and Investment

5 ways trade can support a gender-equal recovery

Informal worker Martha Kotey sells fabrics in Makola Market. For more than 17 years now, Martha has been trading in fabrics, first in brightly coloured printed clothes and now in school uniform fabrics. Changing businesses to school uniform fabric was a deliberate decision and market opportunity, she said. "People are opening different schools, education is moving forward, that's why I want to trade in school uniforms," she explained. Martha's transition in trading goods demonstrates the entrepreneurism of many street vendors, who continually aim to maximize their sales and profits by selling goods in high demand. Martha is one of the more than 2,000 members of the Makola Market Traders Union, an affiliate of the Ghana Trade Union Congress. Its main intervention activities include development projects in the market and negotiations with local and national government for better conditions for its members.

Economic empowerment of women can aid global recovery. Image: Jonathan Torgovnik/Getty Images/Images of Empowerment.

Penelope Naas
President, International Public Affairs and Sustainability, UPS
Pamela Coke-Hamilton
Executive Director, International Trade Centre (ITC)
Nisha Taneja
Professor, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER)
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Benefits of gender-responsive public procurement. Source: ITC, Making Public Procurement Work for Women, 2020.
Benefits of gender-responsive public procurement. Source: ITC, Making Public Procurement Work for Women, 2020.

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Related topics:
Trade and InvestmentSDG 05: Gender EqualityGender InequalityThe Digital Economy
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