The Linkage Between Global Value Chain Participation and Gender Inequality
Evidence From East Asia, South Asia, North Africa and the Middle East
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 17758586 |
|---|---|
| Authors | My Nguyen (0000-0001-6201-5783, Vietnam National University, Hanoi), Hang Nguyen (0009-0005-5125-2261, International School Vietnam National University Hanoi Vietnam), Nguyen Hai Yen (0000-0001-7372-0488, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, corresponding author), Hien Tran (Vietnam National University, Hanoi) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Publication date | 2026-03-25 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Global Networks (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1470-2266 • E-ISSN: 1471-0374 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/glob.70050 |
| OpenAlex | W7140514406 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 34 |
Gender inequality remains a major barrier to inclusive development, yet the gender implications of deeper integration into global value chains (GVCs) are not fully understood across regions. This paper examines whether rising GVC participation is associated with lower gender inequality, focusing on East Asia and the Pacific (EAP) and South Asia and the Middle East and North Africa (SA&MENA) economies from 1990 to 2018. Using a country‐year panel and two‐way fixed effects (TWFE) models that exploit within‐country changes in GVC participation, we find that higher GVC participation is associated with lower Gender Inequality Index (GII), with larger magnitudes in EAP than in SA&MENA. Forward linkages exhibit a stronger negative association than backward linkages. Component outcomes show improvements in employment equality in both regions, while health and education effects are clearer in the world sample and EAP. Interaction evidence suggests that productivity and legal frameworks condition the GVC–gender relationship. Policy implications are to promote upgrading toward higher value‐added GVC integration and women's access to better‐quality jobs across regions, and especially in SA&MENA, to strengthen and enforce women's overall legal protections and workplace rights to better translate integration into lower inequality
East Asia · Global value chain · Inequality · Linkage (software) · Middle East · Panel data · Productivity · Sample (material) · Value (mathematics) · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics · Global trade, sustainability, and social impact · Sociopolitical Dynamics in Nepal
Gender and Work in Global Value Chains
The U-Shaped Female Labor Force Function in Economic Development and Economic History
Skill‐Biased Technological Change and Rising Wage Inequality
Implications of foreign direct investment, capital formation and its structure for global value chains
What Drives Female Labour Force Participation? Comparable Micro-level Evidence from Eight Developing and Emerging Economies
Turning Promises Into Action
The Roots of Gender Inequality in Developing Countries
The Cingranelli and Richards (Ciri) Human Rights Data Project
Gender Inequality, Governance, and Poverty in Sub‐Saharan Africa
What Determines Women's Participation in Collective Action? Evidence from a Western Ugandan Coffee Cooperative
Gender Equality, Economic Growth, and Women’s Agency
Feminization, Defeminization, and Structural Change in Manufacturing
Empowerment in water, sanitation and hygiene index
Gendered Global Production Networks
Segmented market economies in the Arab world
The Decline of the Male Breadwinner and Persistence of the Female Carer
How Cities Erode Gender Inequality
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |