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Laos women have always played a major role in every aspect of Laos's existence. Be it politics, social reforms, war, economy, international relations, women have showed their skills everywhere. During the wars women of Laos participated in everything from military activities to nursing the wounded soldiers to production of food.
Women in Laos are given equal emphasis and rights by the legal system as put down by the Laos constitution. The women are granted inheritance and voting rights. But that does not prevent the Laos women from facing gender discrimination in many areas, especially in households and in urban employment.
As the economy is primarily agrarian and majority of the population are rural, women work along with the men. Their contribution to Laos's agricultural production as subsistence and commercial is in fact more than the men's. Rural Laos women formed 52.8% of the labor force in Laos in 1985. Women also actively participate in the handicraft sector, commerce, public health and education sectors and in the industrial sector. Apart from these it is the Lao women who take up the responsibility of the household and the children.
In the urban areas the Laos women find employment but they rank far lower than the men. In the service sector or the education sector the women of Laos hardly get a managerial post. In the industries they only find work in the factories. Thus gender discrimination is high in the cities than in the villages.
Lao women have experienced an improvement in their standards in education and public health. In politics and civil services women representation is fair as they hold sub directorial positions in the ministries. But at the provincial, district and village level their representation is very poor.
The Lao Women's Union is an organization that stretches from the national to the village level and aims to improve the status of women and mobilize the females.
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