Legal Barriers to Economic Participation

Friday, October 23 &
Tuesday, May 16, 2017
A woman street vendor who sells drinks and food walks on the street in Jakarta September 1, 2015. REUTERS/Beawiharta
Speaker
Sarah Iqbal

Program Coordinator, Women, Business and the Law Project, World Bank Group 

Presider
Rachel B. Vogelstein

Senior Fellow and Director, Women and Foreign Policy Program, Council on Foreign Relations

Women and Foreign Policy Program

This roundtable discussion “Legal Barriers to Economic Participation” with Sarah Iqbal, director of the World Bank Group’s Women, Business, and the Law project, highlights findings from the World Bank’s fourth edition of the global Women, Business and the Law report series.

The report measures how laws, regulations, and institutions differentiate between women and men in ways that affect women’s incentives or capacity to work or to set up and run a business. It provides data on legal and regulatory barriers to women’s entrepreneurship and employment in 173 economies.

Explore More on Labor and Employment

United States

U.S. Temporary Foreign Worker Visa Programs
The United States accepts hundreds of thousands of foreign workers each year in a variety of industries. Persistent U.S. labor shortages and accusations of abuse have reenergized the debate over the scale of these programs.  

Backgrounder by Claire Klobucista and Diana Roy June 8, 2023 Renewing America

Robots and Robotics

With "Burn-In," Cole and Singer Show Us the Robotic Future We Need to Avoid
Burn-In: A Novel of the Real Robotic Revolution gives us the worst-case scenario of how increased automation can affect the U.S. economy and society.

Blog Post by Robert K. Knake October 7, 2020 Digital and Cyberspace Policy Program

United States

The Economic Effects of Working From Home

The coronavirus pandemic has forced many companies to switch to remote work, some permanently. What does this mean for the economy?  

In Brief by Anshu Siripurapu July 16, 2020

Top Stories on CFR

China

Virtual Media Briefing: U.S. Tariffs on Chinese Imports

Play
CFR experts discuss President Joe Biden’s decision to increase tariffs on various Chinese imports and the implications for the U.S. economy and U.S.-China relations. 

Virtual Event with Zongyuan Zoe Liu, Brad W. Setser and Matthew P. Goodman May 16, 2024 Media Briefings

Myanmar

Will 2024 Be the Junta’s End in Myanmar?
Myanmar’s civil war between resistance groups and the ruling military junta has reached a decisive phase.

Blog Post by Joshua Kurlantzick May 15, 2024 Asia Unbound

Taiwan

Taiwan’s Democracy Is Thriving in China’s Shadow
Despite China’s growing pressure, Taiwan has developed one of the world’s strongest democracies—one that will be increasingly tested in the coming years. 

Blog Post by David Sacks May 13, 2024 Asia Unbound