Assets
Women often trail behind men in account and land ownership. Ensuring women have identity cards allows them the opportunity to access services and finance. Ownership of a financial account and land help women escape poverty and protect them from economic shocks.
Account ownership at a financial institution or with a mobile-money-service provider by sex and income group
% of population ages 15+
Saved any money in the past year by sex and income group
% of population ages 15+
Female
Male
Men and women who own a house or land by sex
Latin America & Caribbean
South Asia
Sub-Saharan Africa
Europe & Central Asia
Middle East & North Africa
East Asia & Pacific
North America
The law grants spouses equal administrative authority over assets during marriage
Sons and daughters have equal rights to inherit assets from their parents
Equal administrative authority over assets
Yes
No
Sons and daughters have equal rights to inherit assets
Yes
No
Indicators
- A woman can open a bank account in the same way as a man (1=yes; 0=no)
- Account ownership at a financial institution or with a mobile-money-service provider (% of population ages 15+)
- Borrowed any money in the past year (% age 15+)
- Borrowed for education or school fees (% age 15+)
- Borrowed for health or medical purposes (% age 15+)
- Borrowed from a financial institution (% age 15+)
- Borrowed from a financial institution or used a credit card (% age 15+)
- Borrowed from a savings club (% age 15+)
- Borrowed from a store by buying on credit (% age 15+)
- Borrowed from family or friends (% age 15+)
- Borrowed to start, operate, or expand a farm or business (% age 15+)
- Coming up with emergency funds: not possible (% age 15+)
- Coming up with emergency funds: possible (% age 15+)
- Credit card ownership (% age 15+)
- Debit card ownership (% age 15+)
- Female and male surviving spouses have equal rights to inherit assets (1=yes; 0=no)
- Financial institution account (% age 15+)
- Made digital payments in the past year (% age 15+)
- Made or received digital payments in the past year (% age 15+)
- Main source of emergency funds: family or friends (% able to raise funds, age 15+)
- Main source of emergency funds: loan from a bank, employer, or private lender (% able to raise funds, age 15+)
- Main source of emergency funds: money from working (% able to raise funds, age 15+)
- Main source of emergency funds: other (% able to raise funds, age 15+)
- Main source of emergency funds: sale of assets (% able to raise funds, age 15+)
- Main source of emergency funds: savings (% able to raise funds, age 15+)
- Men and married women have equal ownership rights to immovable property (1=yes; 0=no)
- Mobile money account (% age 15+)
- No deposit and no withdrawal from an account in the past year (% age 15+)
- Outstanding housing loan (% age 15+)
- Outstanding loan for a funeral or wedding (% age 15+)
- Ownership of a house (%)
- Ownership of land (%)
- Paid school fees in the past year (% age 15+)
- Paid utility bills in the past year (% age 15+)
- People with a national identity card or equivalent foundational identity document (% ages 15+)
- Received a public sector pension in the past year (% age 15+)
- Received digital payments in the past year (% age 15+)
- Received domestic remittances in the past year (% age 15+)
- Received government payments in the past year (% age 15+)
- Received government transfers in the past year (% age 15+)
- Saved any money in the past year (% age 15+)
- Saved at a financial institution (% age 15+)
- Saved for education or school fees (% age 15+)
- Saved for old age (% age 15+)
- Saved to start, operate, or expand a farm or business (% age 15+)
- Saved using a savings club or a person outside the family (% age 15+)
- Sent domestic remittances in the past year (% age 15+)
- Sent or received domestic remittances in the past year (% age 15+)
- Sons and daughters have equal rights to inherit assets from their parents (1=yes; 0=no)
- The law grants spouses equal administrative authority over assets during marriage (1=yes; 0=no)
- The law prohibits discrimination in access to credit based on gender (1=yes; 0=no)
- Used a mobile phone or the internet to access an account (% with an account, age 15+)
- Used the internet to buy something online in the past year(% age 15+)
- Used the internet to pay bills in the past year (% age 15+)
- Used the internet to pay bills or to buy something online in the past year (% age 15+)
- Women, Business and the Law: Assets Indicator Score (scale 1-100)
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Recommendations for improving individual-disaggregated data on asset ownership and labor outcomes (World Bank, 2021) (.pdf 4.23 MB)