PROTOCOL: Vocational and business training to increase women's participation in higher skilled occupations in low‐ and middle‐income countries: protocol for a systematic review

Abstract

[...]a greater proportion of women are employed in the services sector (61.5 per cent versus 42.6 per cent of men), where women are particularly overrepresented in feminized positions such as “clerical, services, and sales” and “elementary” occupations (ILO, 2016). [...]although men and women face equal rates of wage and salaried employment (around 52 per cent), men are more likely to own their own business than women (3.7 per cent of men versus 1.4 per cent of women). [...]many young women seek employment in the informal sector, leaving them only with low-skilled employment characterized by minimum income potential, long working hours, and unequal power relationships, which may lead to exploitation. [...]some business training programs are offered with additional incentives. [...]the Jordan New Opportunities for Women program focuses on providing opportunities to young, female college graduates in Jordan to find work ( Groh, Krishnan, McKenzie, & Vishwanath, 2012), while the Women for Women International Social Protection and Cash Transfer program in Nigeria offers biweekly meetings with business, vocational and life-skills training, including lessons in health awareness, decision making, negotiation, and civic participation ( Mcilvaine & Oser, 2014).