Progress Amid Resistance

IRAN 137anger management, domestic violence, and child abuse. The governmentshould support such activities and protect them from harassmentby state and societal actors.F NGOs should form task forces to conduct a needs assessment and proposelegal reforms concerning serial murder, honor killing, rape, andother forms of violence against women.ECONOMIC RIGHTS AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITYIranian women’s economic status does not yet match the remarkable ex -pansion in their literacy rates, educational attainment, and sociopoliticalactivism. As of 2006, the female labor-force participation (LFP) rates inthe formal sector of economy remained very low: 12.6 percent in urbanareas and 12.3 percent in rural areas, for an overall female LFP rate of 12.5percent, compared with 66.1 percent for men. These official statistics maybe misleading, as data on women’s overall economic activity, especially inthe informal and private sectors, have been inconsistent and the subject ofdebate among economists. Depending on the methods of assessment andcriteria used, the estimates have varied widely and they mostly give resultsmuch higher than the official rates. For example, the World Bank, whosefigures include both the formal and informal sectors, estimated the 2006LFP rate at 32 percent for women and 75 percent for men. 47Women hold a minimal share of executive, administrative, and managerialpositions (3.4 percent as of 2006). 48 This is due in part to the bulgingyouth population and its rising demand for new jobs, combined withcultural and ideological biases that give priority to hiring and promotingmen, especially in the private sector.Trends in women’s economic rights reflect the impact of changing statepolicies, legal reforms, and cultural attitudes. A considerable de clinein female LFP and employment in the aftermath of the 1979 Islamicrevolution has been attributed to the impact of policies such as compulsorysex segregation, the weakening of the private sector, and disruptionin trade and industries that had served as important sources ofemployment for women in previous years. 49 Unlike many other developingcountries, which rely on cheap female labor in manufacturing forexports, female employment in Iran has gradually shifted away from theagricultural and manufacturing sectors, such as the export-oriented carpetindustry, and toward the service sector, particularly education, health, and