Short Abstract:

Abstract Many developing countries show significant gender inequality - considered in this article as a measure of women's rights m traditional mechanisms focusing on comparative advantage and gains from expertise to more behavioral mechanisms focusing cost and income.

Long Abstract:

Gender inequality delays the improvement of women's living standards and acts as an obstacle to their contribution to governance and economic development. In other words, gender equality empowers women to access education, health, microfinance and recognition among other productive resources. Gender inequality lowers the quality of life and leads to a decrease in productivity, hindering efficiency and economic growth. The criterion of a successful society is the level of gender equality, which is reflected by the level of rights and empowerment of women in that society. Men and women play an important role in social development, yet women are severely marginalized around the world. The INSTRAW report pointed out that of the one billion people living in poverty worldwide, a higher percentage of them are women (INSTRAW progress report, 2007). Gender includes a wide range of differences between men and women, ranging from biological to social domains. Biological difference entails differences in gender roles in society and gender identity, which is defined as "an individual's conception of oneself as male or female, as distinguished from one's actual biological sex." The term gender refers to socially constructed and learned behaviors and expectations related to men and women. All cultures interpret the biological difference between men and women into a set of social expectations about what rights and what behaviors and activities are appropriate, but like race, ethnicity, and class, gender is a social category that largely determines one's life chances. It determines and shapes a person's participation in society and economy. Gender refers to physical and biological differences that differentiate men and women. While the term "gender" may affect the economic, social and cultural characteristics and opportunities associated with men or women. In almost all societies, men and women differ in their activities and obligations in terms of access and control of resources and participation in decision-making. Being male or female is an important social division characterized by inequality. Gender inequality is a socially supported social construct that results in gender inequality between the two sexes, with respect to roles, rights, resources, responsibility, and power, and may lead to gender discrimination/unequal treatment against female counterparts or unfair treatment associated with The gender of women compared to men is related in many areas of life. Women are not involved in household decisions on spending their personal income (Katz & Chamorro, 2003; Reed et al, 2010). The United Nations also noted that inequality between women and men persists in many aspects of life in most countries (United Nations, 2007).

Yomi also raised another challenge, describing it as a "paternal lineage system" in which generations are identified through male descendants. The responsibility of preserving and perpetuating the "family tree" rests with male children and they are recognized in "preparing their adult roles" (Yomi, 2007). Despite the 1979 United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (which calls for equal rights of men and women in the education of children and generally equal rights and duties in marriage and divorce), The 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development (which equally addresses the need for broader population control policies through economic development, women's education and empowerment, and quality health care including family planning services), the Beijing Platform, adopted at the Fourth Conference 1995 International Women's Day (which insists that women participate fully in the development system worldwide), the 2011 Maputo Protocol (which promotes women's rights by guaranteeing social and political equality with men and controlling their reproductive health), the goal Third Millennium Development (which provides direction for governments to focus on education, employment and political participation), The fifth goal of sustainable development (which requires the international community to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls), gender inequality still persists in some countries, leading to gaps between men and women in various indicators of life such as economic constraints, Political participation and low empowerment, reduced educational achievement and poor health, cultural and religious restrictions and orders, high burden of family responsibilities and poor exposure to their male counterparts. Being a man or a woman affects people's views and social expectations. Compared to men, women have very limited opportunities in most areas of economic and social activities (Sadik, 1986; Curtin Leslie, 1982).

The concept of development has been viewed from different angles: social, economic, political and cultural. Development is a multi-dimensional, diverse and possibly improving movement in the entire socio-economic system, which emphasizes on improving the appropriate sectors and ultimately increasing the level of income, improving the quality of life and stabilizing the population. Development is a process to improve the quality of life of all human beings, raise people's living standards and create conditions for the growth of people's self-esteem through the creation of social, political and economic systems and institutions (Todaro & Smith, 2009). In addition, Todaro and Smith stated three core values of development, which are sustenance, ability to meet basic needs, self-esteem, and freedom from servitude. The three goals of development are to increase the availability and expand the distribution of critical basic goods such as food, shelter, health and security. Increasing the standard of living, which consists of: more income, providing more jobs, better education and more attention to cultural and human values, all of which not only help to increase material well-being but also help to production. Individual and national self-esteem and the range of economic and social choices available to individuals and nations can be expanded by freeing them from servitude and dependence. Development is measured through human development indicators such as infant mortality rate, life expectancy, literacy rate and more. Therefore, according to the above, the goals of this article are to investigate the effect of gender inequality on development and provide solutions to improve the situation of countries.