While poverty continues to be one of the main agendas in many countries including Malaysia and Indonesia, the issue of feminization of poverty in both countries remains unresolved. The feminization of poverty in Malaysia and Indonesia become complex due to the fact that poverty and gender inequality are multidimensional problems where there is no ultimate solution to overcome it. This study seeks to investigate the factors underlying the creation of feminization of poverty in Malaysia and Indonesia by examining the role of education to address and reduce the problem. The study also seeks to explore measures taken in regard to women empowerment in reducing the likelihood of women falling into poverty. The methods used for this study are interviews with experts from Malaysia and Indonesia as well as the collection of secondary data. As a comparative study, the study discovered some similar and different factors of feminization of poverty encountered by both countries, together with similar and different roles of education as well as measures taken by both governments. Therefore, the study demonstrates the factors of feminization of poverty in Malaysia and Indonesia and to what extent the education system and women empowerment measures help in addressing and reducing the issue.
