The global gender gap is closing at 68.5% in 2024, however the rate of change is slow compared to 68.4% in 2023. According to the Global Gender Gap report released by the World Economic Forum (WEF) last week, it will take 134 years to achieve full gender equality, which is approximately five generations beyond the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) objective. Iceland maintains its top ranking (93.5%) and is the only economy that has closed more than 90% of the gender gap. India has dropped two positions to 129 out of 146 countries.
In 2022, it was listed at 135 but jumped eight places to 127 last year. According to the report, India closed 64.1% of its gender gap by 2024, providing policymakers with a significant potential to improve. The research states that the “slight regression” is primarily attributable to “small declines” in education and political empowerment. With a population of nearly 140 crore, even taking two steps back results in astonishing proportions. India’s economic participation and opportunity have improved slightly in recent years, but it still needs 6.2 percentage points to match its 2012 score of 46%.
One strategy to achieve the goal is to close gender gaps in labour force participation (45.9%). To achieve this, several steps should be implemented, including preventing girls from dropping out of higher education, giving job skills, ensuring workplace safety, and assisting them in maintaining employment after marriage by sharing household tasks. India ranks 124th in education, with a 17.2 percentage point discrepancy between men and women’s literacy rates. Despite improving in the political empowerment rating, India still has low female participation in Parliament. Confirmation comes from the freshly elected Lok Sabha.
Although there were nearly 800 female contenders, the number of female MPs has decreased from 78 in 2019 to 74, accounting for 13.6% of the total (543 members). The Women’s Reservation Bill, 2023, proposes to reserve one-third of seats in Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies for women, although current numbers are not encouraging. WEF Managing Director Saadia Zahidi urges all underperforming nations, including India, to create the framework conditions for industry and civil society to collaborate on gender equality as an economic priority.
ABHISHEK VERMA
