Determinants of multi-dimensional women empowerment in Mali

This study assesses the dimensions and determinants of multidimensional women empowerment in Mali. It uses the Alkire Foster methodology and factor analysis to create different measures of multidimensional empowerment for 1691 consistent responses. Five indicators of empowerment are employed to create the multidimensional empowerment index. We found that women are multidimensionally disempowered for all the indicators used. At a deprivation cutoff of 2/5, 41.8% are multidimensionally disempowered, and 79.6% using the multidimensional disempowerment headcount. Also, we find that agency domain contributes significantly to the empowerment index. For the factor analysis method, two factors played a very important role in the creation of the empowerment index. Age of the respondent, wealth index, sex of the household head, educational status, and region of residence play an important role in determining empowerment in both approaches used in the study. The study concludes that the level of women empowerment in Mali is relatively low and that more policy efforts are needed to improve women empowerment. In view of these empirical insights, a number of policy recommendations are proposed to promote the empowerment of women in Mali. First, interventions should concentrate on the identified determinants, including the improvement of educational opportunities, particularly in areas where empowerment scores are lower. Second, it is essential to implement strategies aimed at wealth redistribution and economic inclusion to offset disempowerment resulting from economic disparities. Furthermore, the promotion of gender-balanced household dynamics through awareness campaigns and policy incentives could make a substantial contribution to women’s empowerment.