Although the gaps are narrowing in health and education worldwide, women are still having difficulty competing with men on an equal footing in economics and politics.
Not surprisingly, Scandinavian countries once again top the list of countries with the most equalitarian relationships between men and women. Out of the 135 countries referenced in the 2011 Gender Inequality Report carried out by the World Economic Forum, Iceland, Norway, Finland and Sweden ranked first, while Mali, Pakistan, Chad and Yemen were last. Overall, close to 85% of countries made progress while 15% regressed.
The report says that legislation plays a big role in reducing the gender gap. 88% of countries polled had implemented legislation forbidding gender discrimination in the workplace. 20% have mandatory representation of women on boards of directors and 30% have introduced laws on political participation. Some legislation even impacts the birth rate, such as in Nordic countries, by facilitating work/family balance. These laws include mandatory paternal leave and the implementation of generous parental benefits.
Canada climbed from 20th to 18th position with respect to 2010, partly due to gains in education. The US ranked 17th overall, but although it climbed six places in terms of economic participation, its poor performance in equal pay for equal work placed it 68th in this area. Despite some improvement in its ranking, China was in 61st place. Although almost three quarters of Chinese women work, men’s salaries there are increasing much faster.