Tourism has long been a major catalyst for social and economic transformation. Women play an important role in global tourism, accounting for 54% of the workforce. However, most of their work is low-skilled and informal, limiting their access to quality social protection. Women in tourism typically earn 10–15% less than their male counterparts, while their hours of unpaid care work remain high, at 76.2% to 80%, especially in family tourism businesses. The COVID-19 pandemic further exposed the economic and social insecurity of women in the face of global economic shocks. This is exacerbated by a significant increase in unpaid care work and domestic violence during the pandemic.
In Asia and the Pacific, the lack of awareness about gender equality issues has made it challenging to bridge the gender gap in women’s education, entrepreneurship, and leadership. Although the number of women involved in tertiary education is relatively high across the region, being educated does not automatically translate into employment. A common challenge is related to the homemaker ‘duties’ of women and other sociocultural barriers such as marriage or religious rules, which prevent them from obtaining secure jobs and devoting time to advancing their careers. Instead, women look for informal, seasonal, and lower-paying roles in exchange for flexibility, allowing them to keep working while caring for their families. However, this places a double burden on women, forcing them to juggle work and family lives.
Women are also discouraged from seeking employment as frontliners in the hospitality and tourism industry due to the risk of sexual and moral harassment. Because of their vulnerability in the labor market, many women are unwilling to report incidents of sexual harassment out of fear of losing their job. Even if a woman does report, they may feel unheard and unprotected due to employer ignorance as well as a lack of legal action when dealing with sexual harassment complaints. Their participation is, therefore, hampered by complex sociocultural expectations and policies that support these notions.
Asian women are often perceived as less suitable for leadership roles. This perception is influenced by sociocultural structures that have induced them to perform supporting roles rather than pursuing leadership. Current institutional and social constraints limit women’s visibility and authority in the public and political arenas. The proportion of female tourism ministers in Asia and the Pacific has fallen from 15% in 2019 to 9.6% in 2022. Gender stereotypes and discrimination further undermine the roles and capabilities of Asian women. Many hospitality and tourism businesses prefer Western expertise and knowledge in leadership positions, restraining Asian women’s opportunities.
While women outnumber men as tourism entrepreneurs in many Asian countries, women-owned businesses are often small-scale or home-based with little to no supporting workforce, resulting in lower financial returns than other sectors. Moreover, women entrepreneurs in the region face a lack of networking opportunities and skills to help them realize their full entrepreneurial potential. In comparison to their male counterparts, the networking ability of women is often limited by family responsibilities. This hinders opportunities to expand their skills, contacts, credit, and knowledge. Female entrepreneurship issues are often isolated from regional and national economic policies, leaving women’s welfare issues to non-governmental and civil society organizations.
To address gender issues, targeted training and education to advance skills among women are needed. Institutions should consider incorporating intersectionality in their training curriculums to enhance technical and soft skills as well as women’s competency in entrepreneurship, leadership, and digitization. Recently, UNCTAD and Thailand Science Research and Innovation, under the national Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) economy model, partnered to train women entrepreneurs and researchers how to use science, technology, and innovation to achieve sustainable and inclusive growth. Access to training and education would equip women with the necessary skill set to expand their network and compete for senior leadership positions. Initiatives developed by national governments, the private sector, and civic stakeholders are pivotal to ensuring female representation in decision-making processes at all levels of the tourism sector.
To formulate favorable policies for women in tourism and accelerate gender equality, sex-disaggregated tourism data is critical. The current gender data gap makes it difficult to monitor progress on women’s empowerment. These data should be collected and incorporated into national statistical strategies to support the development of action plans for gender equality in tourism alongside policies to ensure decent working conditions, improve social protection, and close the gender pay gap for women in tourism. Besides, gender mainstreaming can be accomplished by integrating gender perspectives into all ongoing tourism programs and initiatives with clear, gender-targeted interventions to support women in tourism and evaluate relevant socio-economic strategies.
Furthermore, financing mechanisms for formal credit and loans must be introduced to foster female entrepreneurship and economic empowerment. More domestic support and skill-building opportunities should be available for women in rural communities to alleviate their burden of unpaid care work. For example, the Gender Responsive Equitable Agriculture and Tourism (GREAT) program in Vietnam provided hospitality training to enhance ethnic women’s skills in managing homestays and operating tourism businesses as well as advancing their role in the tourism industry, at home, and in their local communities.
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Mekong Tourism Forum 2023 features a panel discussion on “Women’s Empowerment – the Centre Stage of Tourism Recovery”, led by Mr. Steven Schipani, Principal Tourism Industry Specialist, Asian Development Bank. This session will discuss issues affecting women’s participation in the tourism sector and measures to create greater gender equality in the Mekong region.
Don’t miss this opportunity to meet and join discussions with regional tourism experts. See detailed program and full list of MTF 2023 speaker lineup at: https://mekongtourism.org/program-cambodia/.