Global gender gap narrows, but full equality 'still 123 years away'

World Economic Forum finds women outpace men in education but remain sidelined from leadership as the world enters an AI-driven era

The World Economic Forum report finds key progress has been made to deliver equality but there is still much work to be done. Photo: Reuters

The global gender gap has closed at its fastest rate since the Covid-19 pandemic, but parity could be as much as 123 years away, a World Economic Forum report found.

WEF's Global Gender Gap Report 2025, released on Wednesday, revealed significant strides have been made to remove barriers to progress for women, but there is much work still to be done.

The annual study said the gender gap has now narrowed by 68.8 per cent, an improvement of 0.3 percentage points from 2024.

It marks the strongest progress since Covid-19 disrupted social and economic systems worldwide. Still, at the current rate, the report estimates that it will take 123 years to achieve full parity.

“At a time of heightened global economic uncertainty and a low growth outlook combined with technological and demographic change, advancing gender parity represents a key force for economic renewal," said Saadia Zahidi, managing director at the World Economic Forum.

"The evidence is clear. Economies that have made decisive progress towards parity are positioning themselves for stronger, more innovative and more resilient economic progress.”

The latest gender gap report by the World Economic Forum.

The report shows that women now surpass men in higher education enrolment globally, with female university attendance more than men by nearly 30 percentage points in some regions.

However, only 28.8 per cent of senior leadership roles are held by women.

Women make up 41.2 per cent of the global workforce, but they are mostly employed in lower-paying sectors, such as care and education, and are underrepresented in infrastructure, technology and leadership roles.

“Women's progress in leadership continues to decline. As the global economy transforms, AI accelerates, and countries look to combat stagnating growth, this leadership gap should set alarm bells ringing,” said Sue Duke, global head of public policy at LinkedIn.

“The varied experience and uniquely human skills that women bring to the leadership table are essential to unlocking the full promise of an AI-powered economy yet are being overlooked at exactly the moment they are needed most."

Iceland leads the way

Iceland remains the most gender-equal nation for the 16th year in a row, closing 92.6 per cent of its gender gap.

Other top performers include Finland, Norway, the UK and New Zealand. Meanwhile, Latin America and the Caribbean emerged as the fastest-improving region, advancing 8.6 percentage points since 2006.

Low and middle-income countries are also catching up. Ecuador, Mexico, Bangladesh and Ethiopia are among the fastest movers globally.

The report also warned that new global risks, such as trade fragmentation and uneven AI adoption, could reverse some of the progress.

Women in lower-income economies who moved into formal jobs through global trade may be most vulnerable to future economic shocks.

Women are 55.2 per cent more likely to take career breaks than men, and they also spend on average half a year more than men away from work, with caregiving responsibilities driving most of these breaks.

The 19th edition of the report, which covers 148 economies, assesses only gender gaps in outcomes for men and women and does not take into consideration the overall levels of resources and opportunities in a country.

The report found a "slight correlation between the current income levels of the countries covered and their gender gaps", with richer economies being slightly more gender equal.