Gender Equality in the Czech Republic
| Czech_Republic | |
 Flag of Czech_Republic | |
| Population (in Mil.) | 10.50 |
| Gross Domestic Product (In USD Billions - WB) | 217.03 |
| Sex Ratio (m/f) | 0.95 |
| Life Expectancy Ratio (f/m) | 1.086 |
| Fertility Rate | 1.26 |
| Income Ratio (f/m) | 0.57 |
| Literacy Ratio (f/m) | 1 |
| Tertiary Enrolment Ratio (f/m) | 1.1 |
| Women in Parliament (in %) | 17 |
| INDICES | |
| Human Development Index | 27/169 |
| Social Institutions and Gender Index | - /86 |
| Gender Inequality Index | 27/138 |
| Gender Equity Index | 57/157 |
| Women’s Economic Opportunity Index | 22/113 |
| Global Gender Gap Index | 65/134 |
| More information on variables | |
Contents |
Overview
Significant salary gaps and low political participation of owmen reflect some of the challenges facing the Czech Republic in achieving gender equality. Discrimination against Romani women (including reported cases of involuntary sterilization in 2005) also point to the double discrimination faced by certain groups of women. CEDAW has criticised the Czech Republic for inadequate laws targeting discrimination.
Legislation
There is no specialised gender equality legislation in the Czech Republic, although references to gender equality are made in the Constitution and the Labour Code. The country is a signatory to CEDAW. In 2001, the Governmental Council for Equal Opportunities of Women and Men was established. The Council prepares proposals promoting equal opportunities for women and men. The main activities and tasks of this Council are:
- Negotiating and advising on the basic conceptual directives of the Government in promoting equal opportunities for women and men.
- Determining the sphere of priorities for the projects of departments aimed at supporting the implementation of equal opportunities.
- Identifying the actual problems in society concerning equal opportunities.
- To evaluate to what extent the principles of equal opportunities for women and men are adopted in practice.
The Governmental Council for Human Rights is an advisory body to the Czech Government on issues of protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, established in 1998. It is responsible for overseeing the Government's commitments under CEDAW; it has recently established the Committee for Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination of Women.
Employment
According to the Czech Statistical Office 2005 publication, Women and men in statistics, women earn almost 3,700 CZK a month less than men do, irrespective of the fact that they have the same education. The widest pay gap is found in the category of people who have completed secondary school education without going on to third level education – women in this category earn almost 30% less than their male counterparts. A 26% pay difference, in favour of men, is recorded between male and female university graduates. Lack of flexible working practices has been identified as a significant cause.
A bill requiring payment of child support has been rejected, making the situation of single mothers more difficult. The Czech Republic also has the highest rates of small children placed in state care.
Education
Since 1993, the number of women with only a primary Education declined by three fifths. Almost 60% of women have graduated from secondary or higher schools and just 8% of women have a primary education only. Those who have completed secondary school mostly work in the financial sector, in public administration and in healthcare, while university graduates mostly work in the education sector; 45% of women employed in the latter sector are university graduates.
Health
In the Czech Republic, the life expectancy at birth is 77 years for both sexes, females have a higher life expectancy average rate with 80 years, whereas men can expect an average of 74 years. Thus, both genders have a higher average life expectancy compared to the global average of 66 years for men, and women are exactly on the global average of 71 years. The adult mortality rate (per 1000 adults between 15-59 years) is counted with 101 considering the global average of 176. The maternal mortality ratio is measured with 8 deaths per 100000 live births, which is comparably low when considering the global average of 260 deaths. The under-5 mortality rate has decreased significantly from 1990 till today, and is stated as 4 deaths per 1000 live births, which includes both sexes and is below the global average of 60 deaths. Prevalence of HIV occurs at one case per 1000 adultus aged from 15-49 years, which is far below the average of 8 cases globally. The prevalence of tuberculosis is also low with 11 cases per 100000, than the global average with 201 cases. Tobacco smoking shows a modest contrast between the genders; 34,8% of 15+ years old men are regular smokers, but only 27,2% of women smoke regularly. 30,5% of the male adult 20+ population and 26,5% of females are considered to suffer from obesityUNIQ7d008a733e7ebd93-nowiki-00000001-QINU1UNIQ7d008a733e7ebd93-nowiki-00000002-QINU.
Political Empowerment
Women received the right to vote in 1920. There is low participation of women in government and public life. There is no law helping women increase their representation in governmental bodies. According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Czech Republic is on the 76th position among 190 countries as regards women's representation in parliament.Women hold 15 % of seats in the 200-member Czech Chamber of Deputies and less than 14% in the 81-member Senate.
References
Sources
- Gender Equality Issues Czech Website
- Advocates for Human Rights Website
- European Industrial Relations Website
- Czech News Portal
- European Roma Rights Center
The Women, Business and the Law
Where are laws equal for men and women?
The Women, Business and the Law report presents indicators based on laws and regulations affecting women's prospects as entrepreneurs and employees. Several of these indicators draw on the Gender Law Library, a collection of over 2,000 legal provisions impacting women's economic status. This report does not seek to judge or rank countries, but to provide information to inform discussions about women’s economic rights. Women, Business and the Law provides data covering 6 areas: accessing institutions,using property, getting a job, providing incentives to work, building credit, and going to court. Read more about the methodology.
For detailed information on Czech Republic, please visit the Women, Business and
the Law Czech Republic page.
The FAO Gender and Land Rights Database
The FAO Gender and Land Rights Database contains country level information on social, economic, political and cultural issues related to the gender inequalities embedded in those rights. Disparity on land access is one of the major causes for social and gender inequalities in rural areas, and it jeopardizes, as a consequence, rural food security as well as the wellbeing of individuals and families.
Six categories
The Database offers information on the 6 following Categories:
- National legal frame
- International treaties and conventions
- Customary law
- Land tenure and related Institutions
- Civil society organizations
- Selected Land Related Statistics
For detailed information on Czech Republic, please visit the report on Czech Republic in the FAO Gender and Land Rights Database.
