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1998 Women of Our World Data Sheet

(1998) Over the last several decades, women around the world have made significant gains in areas such as health, work, and education. Since the 1950s, women's life expectancy has increased from 49 years to 68 years. Since the 1960s, women's participation in the labor force has risen from 33 percent to 54 percent. Since the 1970s, literacy rates for women have risen from 54 percent to 64 percent. And since the 1980s, the gap between girls and boys enrolled in secondary school has narrowed, from 80 girls to 90 girls enrolled per 100 boys.

This progress is due, in part, to a growing awareness that continuing social and economic development depends on improving women's lives and on allowing women to participate fully in society. International conferences, notably the 1994 United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), held in Cairo, and the 1995 UN Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing, have called for a greater push for women's progress and equality.

Despite this progress, this PRB data sheet demonstrates that women throughout the world still experience significant social and economic disadvantages.

You can also use PRB's DataFinder to view these variables.

Data Variables from data sheet:

Demographic

Total Females
Women Ages 15–49
Life Expectancy at Birth
Total Fertility Rate
Percent of Female-Headed Households, 1985/1996

Women's Reproductive Health

Percent of Married Women Using Contraception
Most Used Method of Family Planning, 1990/1995
Percent of Births Attended by Skilled Personnel, 1996
Maternal Deaths per 100,000 Live Births
Abortion Policy 1996/1997

Labor Force

Percent in Labor Force (ages 15+), 1995
Percent of Labor Force in Agriculture, 1990

Education

Percent Literate (ages 15+)
Percent Enrolled in Secondary School 1980
Percent Enrolled in Secondary School 1995
Percent of Females Enrolled in Secondary School per 100 Males, 1995

Women in Public Life

Women as Percent of Parliament, January 1998
As Percent of Ministerial and Subministerial Officials, 1996

Selected Variables from Women of Our World Data Sheet

	Women Ages 15–19 (in millions)		Maternal Deaths per 100,000 live births	Percent of Females Enrolled in Secondary School per 100 Males, 1995
	1998	2020
Africa	182	333	880	84
Sub-Saharan Africa	146	280	980	83
Northern Africa	42	65	330	86
Algeria	7.7	12.2	160	90
Egypt	16.3	24.3	170	85
Libya	1.3	2.8	220	94
Morocco	7.4	10.3	610	75
Sudan	7	11.5	660	87
Tunisia	2.5	3.4	170	94
Western Africa	52	100	1,020	73
Benin	1.3	2.7	990	42
Burkina Faso	2.5	5.1	930	55
Cote d'Ivoire	3.3	6.1	810	51
Gambia	0.3	0.5	1,100	57
Ghana	4.4	8.4	740	64
Guinea	1.7	3.2	1,600	35
Guinea-Bissau	0.3	0.4	910	47
Liberia	0.6	1.4	560	—
Mali	2.7	5.3	1,200	50
Mauritania	0.6	1	930	56
Niger	2.2	4.7	1,200	48
Nigeria	27.7	53.4	1,000	84
Senegal	2.1	3.9	1,200	61
Sierra Leone	1.1	1.9	1,800	57
Togo	1	2	640	35
Eastern Africa	55	108	1,080	78
Burundi	1.5	2.8	1,300	61
Comoros	0.2	0.3	950	81
Djibouti	0.2	0.3	570	72
Eritrea	0.8	1.5	1,400	73
Ethiopia	13.4	28.2	1,400	83
Kenya	6.9	12.9	650	85
Madagascar	3.7	7.6	490	100
Malawi	2.4	4.5	560	62
Mauritius	0.3	0.4	50*	106
Mozambique	4.2	7.9	1,500	64
Reunion	0.2	0.2	—	—
Rwanda	1.5	3.1	1,300	77
Somalia	2.4	5	1,600	—
Tanzania	7.5	14.3	770	82
Uganda	4.7	9.8	1,200	59
Zambia	2	3.9	940	63
Zimbabwe	2.9	5	570	79
Middle Africa	20	41	950	61
Angola	2.6	5.5	1,500	66
Cameroon	3.3	6.3	550	68
Central African Rep.	0.8	1.4	700	41
Chad	1.6	2.9	1,500	24
Congo	0.6	1.3	890	72
Dem. Rep. Congo (Zaire)	10.7	22.6	870	61
Gabon	0.3	0.5	500	—
Southern Africa	13	20	270	119
Botswana	0.4	0.6	250	106
Lesotho	0.5	0.9	610	147
Namibia	0.4	0.7	370	118
South Africa	11.1	17.5	230	120
Swaziland	0.2	0.4	560	98
North America	77	78	8	101
Canada	7.9	7.6	4*	99
United States	69.6	70.6	8	101
Latin America & Caribbean	134	172	180	114
Central America	34	48	140	102
Costa Rica	0.9	1.3	24*	109
El Salvador	1.6	2.4	300	114
Guatemala	2.7	5.1	200	91
Honduras	1.5	2.7	220	123
Mexico	25.8	33.7	110	101
Nicaragua	1.1	1.9	160	118
Panama	0.7	0.9	55	107
Caribbean	10	11	350	112
Cuba	3	2.6	42	105
Dominican Republic	2.2	2.7	110	140
Haiti	1.9	2.9	1,000	96
Jamaica	0.7	0.8	120	112
Puerto Rico	1	1.1	20*	—
Trinidad and Tobago	0.3	0.4	62*	120
South America	90	112	190	119
Argentina	9	11.5	50	108
Bolivia	1.9	3.2	650	87
Brazil	46.3	54.5	220	134
Chile	3.9	4.6	44	109
Colombia	10.2	12.9	100	115
Ecuador	3.2	4.5	150	104
Guyana	0.2	0.3	—	122
Paraguay	1.3	2.2	160	105
Peru	6.6	9.1	280	93
Uruguay	0.8	0.9	85*	120
Venezuela	6	8.6	120	142
Asia	929	1,157	410	82
Asia (Excl. China)	584	813	510	77
Western Asia	44	69	350	76
Armenia	1	1	50*	79
Azerbaijan	2.1	2.3	22*	107
Bahrain	0.1	0.2	60*	104
Cyprus	0.2	0.2	5*	103
Georgia	1.4	1.3	33*	97
Iraq	5.1	9.7	310	64
Israel	1.5	1.9	8*	98
Jordan	1.4	2.7	150	—
Kuwait	0.5	0.7	29*	99
Lebanon	0.9	1.1	300	109
Oman	0.5	1.3	190	93
Qatar	0.1	0.2	—	101
Saudi Arabia	4.1	9	130	87
Syria	3.7	6.8	180	87
Turkey	17.2	21.6	180	67
United Arab Emirates	0.4	0.7	26*	109
Yemen	3.6	8.2	1,400	23
South—Central Asia	354	521	570	67
Afghanistan	5.4	10	1,700	36
Bangladesh	31.2	47.3	850	55
Bhutan	0.4	0.8	1,600	—
India	241.4	333.6	570	65
Iran	16.6	31.6	120	84
Kazakstan	4.5	4.9	41	101
Kyrgyzstan	1.1	1.5	110	111
Nepal	5.4	9.6	1,500	51
Pakistan	33.9	62.6	340	55
Sri Lanka	5.2	5.8	140	109
Tajikistan	1.5	2.5	130	94
Turkmenistan	1.1	1.7	55	99
Uzbekistan	6.1	9.4	55	89
Southeast Asia	135	177	460	93
Cambodia	2.7	4.1	900	59
Indonesia	56	71	650	85
Laos	1.2	2.4	650	63
Malaysia	5.4	7.9	80	109
Myanmar	12.5	17.5	580	103
Philippines	18.3	26.9	280	103
Singapore	1	0.9	4*	103
Thailand	17.2	17.1	200	98
Viet Nam	20.6	28.3	160	—
East Asia	396	389	90	91
China	345.5^a	344.1^a	95	88
Japan	30	25.1	9	102
Korea, North	6.6	7.1	70	—
Korea, South	13.2	12	130	101
Mongolia	0.7	1	65*	135
Taiwan	6.1	7.6	—	—
Europe	184	156	10	104
Northern Europe	22	20	10	110
Denmark	1.3	1.1	5*	104
Estonia	0.4	0.3	54*	111
Finland	1.2	1.1	5*	114
Ireland	0.9	0.8	5*	106
Latvia	0.6	0.5	11*	104
Lithuania	0.9	0.8	7*	104
Norway	1.1	1	7*	95
Sweden	2	1.9	5*	105
United Kingdom	14	12.3	7*	112
Western Europe	45	38	10	98
Austria	2	1.7	6*	96
Belgium	2.5	2.1	4*	106
France	14.5	12.7	11	99
Germany	19.8	16.4	8	98
Netherlands	4	3.3	7*	95
Switzerland	1.8	1.5	4*	—
Eastern Europe	80	69	20	106
Belarus	2.7	2.3	5*	105
Bulgaria	2.1	1.8	17*	99
Czech Republic	2.6	2.3	15*	103
Hungary	2.5	2.1	16*	105
Moldova	1.2	1.2	60*	104
Poland	10.1	9.4	12	101
Romania	5.8	5.1	66	101
Russia	38.9	32.5	13	108
Slovakia	1.4	1.3	—	104
Ukraine	12.9	11	7*	107
Southern Europe	36	29	10	105
Albania	0.9	1	39*	102
Bosnia—Herzegovina	1.1	1	—	—
Croatia	1.1	1	—	103
Greece	2.6	2.1	3*	93
Italy	14.2	10.5	7*	102
Macedonia	0.6	0.6	—	101
Portugal	2.5	2.1	15*	110
Slovenia	0.5	0.4	6*	103
Spain	10.3	8.1	4*	110
Yugoslavia	2.6	2.4	—	104
Oceania	7	9	290	98
Australia	4.7	5.1	5*	99
Fiji	0.2	0.3	90*	101
New Zealand	0.9	1.1	10*	98
Papua New Guinea	1.1	1.8	930	68

Notes:
— Data are unavailable or inapplicable
* Data are based on fewer than 50 annual maternal deaths
a Includes data for Hong Kong

Women of Our World and Regions

	World	More Developed	Less Developed	Less Developed (Excl. China)
Total females (in millions) 1998	2,941	606	2,334	1,723
Women Ages 15—19 (in millions) 1998	1,514	297	1,216	871
2020	1,905	266	1,640	1,296
Life Expectancy at Birth Male	64	71	62	60
Female	68	78	65	62
Total Fertility Rate	3	1.6	3.4	3.9
Percentage of Female—Headed Households 1985/1996	—	27	—	14
Percent of Married Women Using Contraception All	56	68	54	43
Modern	50	61	48	35
Percent of Births Attended by Skilled Personnel 1996	65	99	58	49
Maternal Deaths per 100,000 Live Births	460	10	500	580
Percent Literate (ages 15+) 1995 Male	80	—	78	74
Female	64	—	61	56
Percent Enrolled in Secondary School 1980 Male	51	85	43	37
Female	41	87	29	26
Percent Enrolled in Secondary School 1995 Male	65	99	56	51
Female	59	102	47	42
Percent of Females Enrolled in Secondary School per 100 Males 1995	90	103	84	82
Percent in Labor Force (ages 15+) 1995 Male	82	72	84	84
Female	54	53	55	48
Percent of Labor Force in Agriculture 1990 Male	46	10	55	51
Female	52	8	63	58
Women as Percent of Parliament Jan. 1998	12	14	10	9
As Percent Ministerial and Sub—ministerial Officials 1996	7	14	6	6

Note: — Data are unavailable or inapplicable