Zoom in, see more: Women, Business and the Law uncovers local barriers to women’s economic participation

Two women can live just miles apart in the same country and face entirely different economic rights. Whether a woman can work, start a business, inherit property, or access financial services often depends not only on national laws, but also on where she lives—how state rules, local administrative procedures, and sector-specific regulations are applied. Most country‑level assessments overlook these subnational differences, capturing only a partial picture. To reveal what national data misses, Women, Business and the Law (WBL) piloted a first-of-its-kind initiative to collect subnational data on legal and policy barriers, starting with Nigeria in West and Central Africa and Bosnia and Herzegovina in Eastern Europe.
 

Why look beyond national averages?

Looking beneath national averages reveals a far more fragmented reality. In federal countries, states and provinces often adopt different rules on labor protections, property rights, childcare, business registration, or violence against women—differences that directly shape women’s ability to participate in the economy. Even in countries with harmonized legal systems, local regulations, implementation instruments, and administrative practices can still produce uneven outcomes for women depending on where they live.

Historically, WBL has assessed legal barriers to women’s economic participation at the national level, focusing on a country’s main business city for global comparability. This approach has delivered valuable insights, but it can also mask what happens within countries. This is particularly relevant in federal and mixed legal systems, where state, regional, or local jurisdictions shape women’s economic rights in distinct ways.

The new WBL subnational data fill this gap by showing how laws and policies vary across states and regions, spotlighting progress and persistent challenges. With this more granular evidence, policymakers are better equipped to tailor solutions that respond to local realities.
 

What we learned from the first two in-depth country studies

In 2025, WBL released its first subnational studies in Nigeria and Bosnia and Herzegovina—two decentralized federal systems where local authorities play a central role in shaping laws and policies affecting women’s economic opportunities. The findings from both countries make one message clear: national averages tell only part of the story. Subnational data reveal stark internal differences in laws and their implementation, pointing where these frameworks better support women’s economic participation, or instead, where women face greater barriers

The Nigeria deep dive highlights how multiple legal systems—federal, state, customary, and Islamic— interact to shape women’s economic rights in markedly different ways across the country. Because these frameworks overlap, a woman’s marital, property, and inheritance rights depend heavily on the legal regime under which she marries. The result is a wide spectrum of outcomes, ranging from full legal equality to limited agency and inheritance rights, with direct implications for women’s ability to access financial services and build assets. Across states, these disparities can be substantial: in some cases, women enjoy more than twice the legal rights of those living elsewhere, revealing particularly stark divides between the southern and northern states.

The Bosnia and Herzegovina deep dive tells a similar story: women’s economic rights vary depending on which constituent entity they live in—Republika Srpska or the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH). For example, in FBiH, labor laws provide stronger protections against discrimination in hiring, while Republika Srpska lifted restrictions on women’s ability to work in industrial jobs and guarantees equal pension rights. The two entities also diverge in how they support women beyond the workplace: FBiH has more robust mechanisms to implement equality in marriage, whereas Republika Srpska stands out for its support services for survivors of violence and targeted programs for female entrepreneurs. Together, these differences point to clear opportunities for each entity to learn from the other and scale up approaches that effectively advance women’s economic participation. To support this process, the study offers each entity a tailored diagnostic grounded in its distinct legal and policy landscape.
 

How can subnational data support efforts to unlock women’s economic opportunities?

WBL subnational data goes beyond numbers, providing a strategic roadmap for closing gender gaps where they matter most: at the local level. The first two in-depth studies demonstrate the feasibility and value of collecting subnational data, showing how legal and institutional differences shape women’s economic opportunities within the same country. By translating granular evidence into actionable insights, WBL subnational data equip policymakers with the information they need to drive reforms where they can have the greatest impact.

This precision enables governments and the World Bank to design interventions that respond directly to the realities women face in different parts of a country and where community‑level engagement is essential to shifting norms and ensuring that rights are realized in practice. At the same time, the comparative nature of subnational data enables regions to learn from one another, adapt successful approaches to local contexts, and align reforms with national development priorities.

Ultimately, zooming in on local laws, norms, and policies reveals nuances that national averages miss. By making these differences visible, WBL subnational data strengthen the reach of WBL and complement the World Bank’s ongoing efforts to advance women’s economic empowerment around the world.