How common are gender differences in laws?

- Legal gender differences are widespread: 155 of the 173 economies covered have at least one law impeding women’s economic opportunities. 

- The total number of legal gender differences across 173 economies is 943. 

- In 100 economies, women face gender-based job restrictions. 

- 46 of the economies covered have no laws specifically protecting women from domestic violence. - In 18 economies, husbands can legally prevent their wives from working. 

-Lower legal gender equality is associated with fewer girls attending secondary school relative to boys, fewer women working or running businesses and a wider gender wage gap.  

- Over the past two years, 65 economies carried out 94 reforms increasing women’s economic opportunities

http://wbl.worldbank.org/~/media/WBG/WBL/Documents/Reports/2016/Women-Business-and-the-Law-2016.pdf