United Nations sheds light on the status of women’s empowerment and gender parity around the world.The comprehensive analysis, jointly created by UN Women and UN Development Programme, evaluated 114 countries based on the Women’s Empowerment Index (WEI) and the Global Gender Parity Index (GGPI).
The findings emphasize the urgent need for comprehensive policy action to address the existing gaps and propel progress toward a more equitable and inclusive world.
Key Findings of the Report
- Only 1% of women globally live in countries with high women’s empowerment and gender parity.
- Leadership roles and decision-making remain predominantly male-dominated, restricting opportunities for women.
- On average, women achieve only 60% of their full potential, according to the WEI.
- Women lag behind men by 28% across key dimensions of human development, as measured by the GGPI.
- None of the 114 countries analyzed achieved complete women’s empowerment or gender parity.
- Over 90% of women worldwide reside in countries with low or middle women’s empowerment and low or middle performance in achieving gender parity.
- Gender equality challenges persist even in highly developed countries. Among the 114 countries analyzed, over 85, including more than half in the high or very high human development categories, show low or moderate women’s empowerment and gender parity. Economic progress alone does not ensure gender equality.
- India has low women’s empowerment and gender parity despite moderate human development, highlighting the need for concerted efforts to bridge the gender gap and uplift women’s status.
- Gender equality alone does not guarantee women’s empowerment. The report shows that no country with a gender gap has achieved high women’s empowerment.
- Additionally, about 8% of women live in countries with low empowerment but high gender parity.
UN Women
- UN Women was established in 2010 by the UN General Assembly to accelerate progress on meeting the needs and rights of women and girls worldwide.
- UN Women supports UN Member States as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design and implement laws, policies, programs and services that benefit women and girls.
- UN Women focuses on four strategic priorities: women’s leadership and political participation, women’s economic empowerment, ending violence against women, and peace, security and humanitarian action.