Women and the New World economy: an island’s experience

The development of free trade practices in the world market, together with the recent fluctuations on the international money market, is having an increasing impact on the small island economies, such as Mauritius. This paper, written from the practitioner’s point of view, discusses how the restructuring process is affecting female employees. Examples of corrective action being taken in favour of women, such as training programmes in entrepreneurship and leadership, are presented. The difficulties encountered in achieving the training objectives are reviewed and issues needing further attention to optimise the successful involvement of women in the upgrading of the Mauritian workforce are identified.