Female labor force in the Muslim world women in a country who are either employed in full or part-time labor. According to the International Labour Organization, the labor force participation rate is defined as "the proportion of the population ages 15 and older that is economically active: all people who supply labor for the production of goods and services during a specified period." Table 2 lists the labor force participation rates of women in eleven majority Muslim countries. Majority Muslim countries are defined as states in which more than 50% of the population identifies with the Islamic faith. Of these eleven countries, Bangladesh and Indonesia had the
Female labor force in the Muslim world and economic opportunities are limited. Possible explanations for this phenomenon could the same determinants of high self-employment among females and low rates of female employers: low levels of economic development, gendered employment social norms, or capital-intensive industry. This last explanation may be particularly salient in the oil-rich Muslim nations because petroleum exports are capital-intensive and require very high skilled labor which most Muslim women are incapable of providing given low levels of education. The Great Recession has increased unemployment across the board in many Muslim nations and female workers were not left unaffected. According to the World Bank, in 2009,