Political and Institutional Dynamics of Global Female Labor Force Participation: Discovering the Role of Women Political Participation

ABSTRACT The global nonattainment of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 indicates the issue of rising gender inequality. The educated women shying away from the labor force is worsening it. The institutional and political dynamics of an economy might shape the female labor force participation. A gender‐inclusive policy environment involving these factors should drive the educated women in joining the labor force. The female political representation might shape this policy dynamics. However, the absence of a benchmark policy framework is restraining the realization of this objective. The present study has attempted to develop this policy framework by analyzing the aforesaid dynamics across 125 countries over 1990–2020. The study outcomes obtained via elasticity modeling show that realigning the institutional and political dynamics is necessary to ensure the labor force participation of educated women. The women political participation is found to catalyze this policy objective. The study outcomes are utilized to develop a policy framework for attaining the objectives of SDG 5.