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Gender, Women, Covid-19, and Corruption

 Gender, Women, Covid-19, and Corruption

Source: Getty/picmonkey

Written by Erica Kang (high school intern, June/July 2021)

Corruption affects all people, no matter their gender, age, or where they live. However, studies prove that women are more affected by corruption than men. 

Why so? 

Like how UNODC points out, most women are the caretakers of families, so they are more exposed to public services like healthcare and education. For example, women’s pregnancies and their role in taking care of their children give them more exposure to the health system, in which they have a high chance of being extorted. 

Additionally, when women are bribed in public services, they will feel more obligated to give in, since more women than men are poor. A higher percentage of people in poverty of all ages were women, according to the 2019 Poverty Rate in the U.S. 

Being in a vulnerable state of getting bribed, they can be victims of extortion in exchange for employment, operating a business, among many other situations. This can also be the case for men. However, Transparency International in Rwanda showed that 84.5% of women vs. 15.5% of men are victims of gender-based corruption in work. 

Especially during the Covid-19 Pandemic, women are more prone to losing their job as their time for childcare increases due to the closing down of many childcare centers. In the U.K., there is evidence that women have a higher probability of losing their job during the pandemic. 

Another example of how women are more affected by corruption is that women have less likelihood of obtaining quality medicines and healthcare. According to United Nations, this mainly happens in rural places due to gender stereotypes. If this problem is not fixed, it could end up with infinite deaths. 

It is important to address and spread awareness about gender-based corruption, but equally important to think about and carry out solutions. I believe the most robust solution to gender-based corruption would be for women to speak up about these issues and stand up for themselves. 

In turn, public service organizations should ensure that men and women get equal chances in employment. They also should be aware of the amount of extra time women use up for childcare. 

However, it is obviously hard for women to speak against their bosses, especially for the risk of losing their jobs. Thus, whoever else sees corruption happen, should report it. It is also crucial that educated people spread awareness about gender-based corruption, while men should not ignore these issues. 

Once more people know about it, workplaces should also be more lenient towards mothers and even fathers. Caring for a child is an important and grueling job in society, but the only job not paid for. Therefore, companies should be more flexible with working mothers and provide any accommodations they need. 

Additionally, especially during the global crisis of the coronavirus, women should be ensured equal access to medicines and treatments by hospitals and national plans. More importantly, females should be guaranteed maternity care, which is vital to keep both the mothers and infants healthy, especially during Covid-19.

Sources:
https://www.bcg.com/publications/2020/helping-working-parents-ease-the-burden-of-covid-19 
https://www.unodc.org/lpo-brazil/en/frontpage/2019/12/corruption-and-gender_-women-and-men-affected-differently-by-corruption--but-no-evidence-women-or-men-are-less-corruptible.html 
https://www.transparency.org/en/news/anti-corruption-response-to-covid-19-must-be-transparent-and-include-women 
https://www.cmi.no/publications/5848-the-gendered-impact-of-corruption
https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/policy-brief-the-impact-of-covid-19-on-women-en.pdf
https://www.statista.com/statistics/233154/us-poverty-rate-by-gender/

Reviewed by:
Abraham Sumalinog

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