Unlocking Women’s Economic Potential: Cutting Edge Evidence from Latin America and the Caribbean Kathleen BeegleJacobus de HoopJavier Romero HaakerRaquel Melgar Calderon January 20, 2026 This page in: English

https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/impactevaluations/unlocking-women-s-economic-potential--cutting-edge-evidence-from In Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), women’s economic potential remains untapped. While 75% of males participate in the labor force, only 51% of women do. Women’s economic opportunities are held back by systematic barriers to jobs, an unequal distribution of caregiving responsibilities, and biased social norms that can result in serious social consequences, such as violence against women.