Uma Sarada Kambhampati

This chapter assesses the interactions among SDGs for the case of women’s economic empowerment. For illustration purposes, we single out two forms of hidden gender inequalities within education (i.e., gender bias in learning materials and educational leadership) that may potentially undermine interlinkages between SDGs 4 and 5. Descriptive secondary evidence on the broken and intact interlinkages between female schooling and women’s employment is presented and is followed by a discussion of the policy lessons from South Asia vis-à-vis Southeast Asia-two regions with contrasting experience in harnessing synergistic developments and positive interlinkages for women’s development. In sum, if gender inequality within the production of education is overlooked, schooling girls will not be enough for economic empowerment of women and may even reinforce the broken links between SDGs 4 and 5.

The ongoing pandemic highlights the significance of early and effective leadership in a crisis. Research suggests that when faced with uncertainty, people prefer women as leaders. We contribute to this literature by examining whether women-led countries had fewer COVID-19 deaths than men-led countries and whether leader's communications mattered. We use a novel application of the nearest neighbor matching methodology to compare women-led countries with their nearest male-led countries. Using data on COVID-19 deaths from Worldometer as of May 19, 2020, we find that women-led countries had fewer COVID-19 deaths compared to male-led countries. To understand the mechanisms underpinning this relationship, we conducted a qualitative analysis of leader's speeches made between February, 15 and April 15, 2020. Compared to men, women leaders were more urgent in highlighting the crisis and empowering their citizens by indicating what they could do. We reflect on implications for the effectiveness of leadership in crisis.

We investigate the role of institutions in attracting Chinese FDI into Africa. Focusing on market- and resource-seeking motivations, we consider whether the impact of institutions varies by motivation for FDI. Our data relates to 43 African countries over 11 years, and we use the Generalized Method of Moments to show that Chinese MNEs are market-seeking and are attracted by weaker institutions. This negative effect of institutions is especially strong in resource-rich and higher-income countries. Our study also finds that in resource-rich African countries, better infrastructure quality attracts Chinese FDI.

This paper considers the impact of two measures of lifestyle—the consumption of fruit and vegetables and doing exercise—on individual well-being. Since lifestyle is likely to be endogenous, we correct for this by using two dimensions of delayed gratification as instruments. The ability to delay gratification enables individuals to give greater weight to the investment component of lifestyle decisions rather than merely the affective component. Our analysis is based on the UK Understanding Society Data, which covers 40,000 UK households over time. We find that the two delayed gratification instruments are positive and significant in influencing lifestyle. In Stage 2, we find that fruit and vegetable consumption and sports activity increase life satisfaction, though the impacts vary for men and women. These results are robust across income quartiles, region, gender, education and age groups.

Since the start of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the relationship between national women leaders and their effectiveness in handling the COVID-19 crisis has received much media attention. This paper scrutinizes this association by considering income, demography, health infrastructure, gender norms, and other national characteristics and asks if women's leadership is associated with fewer COVID-19 cases and deaths in the first few months of the pandemic. The paper also examines differences in the policy responses of leaders by gender. Using a constructed dataset for 194 countries, it uses a variety of economic and sociodemographic variables to match nearest neighbors. The findings show that COVID-19 outcomes, especially deaths, are better in countries led by women and may be explained by the timing of lockdowns. The study uses insights from behavioral studies and leadership literature to speculate on the sources of these gender differences as well as on their implications. HIGHLIGHTS

What is COVID-19’s impact on development? What lessons can be drawn from development studies regarding the effects of and recovery from COVID-19? The

This study considers the factors that influence women's work behavior in Kenya. In particular, it examines whether gender attitudes and certain types of social institution influence the probability of employment or type of employment for women. Using data from the Demographic and Health Survey of 2008–9, it finds that religion and ethnicity are significant determinants of women's employment in Kenya. While personal experience of female genital mutilation is insignificant, spousal age and education differences, as well as marital status (which reflect attitudes both in women's natal and marital families), are significant determinants of women's employment choices.