How much are Norwegian Women Worth?

I recently participated in the OECD Climate Change Expert Group (CCXG).   Many OECD publications are spread throughout the building and I picked up the OECD Observer - the magazine.

As I read it later that night (with a glass of wine!) I learned new pieces of information.  For instance, did you know that the first SMS message - ever - was sent in December 1992?   It was interesting to remember the world where the concept of an instant message did not exist.  It is only 20 years ago.

The also had an article about the origins of the World Wide Web.  And I learned that someone starting thinking about it in the 1930s!

But the most fascinating fact I learned came from an article where the Norwegian Minister of Finance wrote about why and how Norway has supported women in the work force (making the country one of the best ones for women to work and live in). He wrote:

"If the level of female participation in Norway were to be reduced to the OECD average, Norway’s net national wealth would, all other factors being equal, fall by a value equivalent to our total petroleum wealth, including the value of assets held in the Government Pension Fund-Global."

And extraordinatory point to make.  And this is the minister of finance speaking.

Here is the rest of the article "Women in Work: The Norwegian Experience".