There is broad recognition that closing the gender gap is crucial to global economic prosperity. So why is progress so slow? - BY James Hsu

The World Economic Forum (WEF) issues an annual edition of the Global Gender Gap Index with the 2023 report benchmarking gender parity levels across 146 countries. Gender parity is a statistical measure of various indicators among women compared to men in public and private life. The result is that the WEF estimates it will take 131 years to reach full gender parity, which currently stands at approximately 68.4%.

Progress on gender parity is slow, and not showing signs of accelerating. Many ask why, especially since half the global population is women. Helping them thrive on an equal basis with men can uplift economies, reduce poverty, accelerate innovation, and lead to a more just society.

Global Challenges in Full Force

Interesting statistics in the WEF report point to the challenges of achieving global gender parity. No country has yet achieved full gender parity. “For the 146 countries covered in the 2023 index, the Health and Survival gender gap has closed by 96%...the Educational Attainment gap by 95.2%,” reads the report. However, the Economic Participation and Opportunity gap has closed by 60.1% and the Political Empowerment gap by 22.1%.

Women continue to struggle to achieve economic and political success because they are held back by a variety of factors. Some of these including cultural norms, male biases, workplace policies that do not meet women’s needs, and a lack of political voice, among other issues. Europe has gender parity at 76.3%, followed by North America at 75%. Latin America and the Caribbean are at 74.3%, but Eurasia and Central Asia are at 69%, East Asia and the Pacific at 68.8%, Sub-Saharan Africa at 68.2%, Southern Asia at 63.4%, and the Middle East and North Africa at 62.6%. The labor market is where some of the main global challenges to gender equity exist. Women’s labor force participation continues to remain low. Per the WEF, women face higher unemployment rates compared to men, and those who are employed often face substandard working conditions. Four out of every five jobs created for women are in the informal economy.

Even when looking at women in leadership, the WEF quotes LinkedIn reports for 163 countries which shows just 32.2% of senior leadership positions are held by women, even though women are 41.9% of the workforce. The data also shows that hiring more women into leadership positions steadily increased yearly for eight years until 2022, when the trend reversed. Women are significantly underrepresented in the STEM workforce. There are gender gaps in skilling opportunities, with gaps widening as proficiency levels increase. Women are also still underrepresented in political leadership.

Universal Challenges

The challenges women face in achieving gender parity, gender equity, and gender equality are in developed and developing countries. This signals the deep cultural norms holding women back.

For example, Masahiko Uotani is the President and Group CEO of the Japanese company Shiseido. Asked about the obstacles to women advancing to leadership positions in Japan, he names several factors that apply to companies worldwide. Japan is a hierarchal country, and a cultural shift is needed before change happens. He says there is a need for “an expansion of the small bench of women qualified for these positions, and a long–term vision to guide women into career paths that leverage their education and skills.” Uotani also advises women who aspire to leadership positions to set goals and proactively develop skills, including relationship-building and self-advocacy. Finally, he says board members and CEOs need to “employ actionable plans with defined and measurable goals.”

In Colombia, Project H was created by the CESA School of Business’ Center for Corporate Governance Studies (CEGC). Project H promotes gender equity to include men as allies. The goal is to “position gender equity as an ‘organizational issue, and not a women’s issue.’” The co-director of the CEGC, Alexander Guzmán, says Project H has focused on helping organizations understand they have the power and the duty to empower female talent and all other talent through best practices. Women have led the gender equity conversation, but it is important to know what men think about gender equity and what they consider to be the challenges and benefits of being included in the conversations.

This advice is good, but not all countries are as advanced in their perspectives on women working outside the home. The labor force participation rates are much lower in emerging markets than in developed markets, with wide regional variations. Female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies reached a 10% level in 2023, but women of color account for a mere 5% of CEOs in emerging markets.

Pay equity is also declining across most regions. Women are overrepresented in service industries, so there is a lower wage gap of 11%. However, they are underrepresented in higher-paying jobs, so the pay gap increases to 38% for senior and leadership positions. It often takes dedicated programs to make a difference, such as what JPMorgan Chase is going with their Winning Women program, aimed at undergraduate women to provide an entry point into financial services, and their ReEntry Program for professionals who took a career break.

Progress Depends on Not Giving Up

It could be disheartening to realize that only a small percentage of countries are close to or have achieved gender parity. However, there are critical global efforts to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment, like the groups mentioned and others like the UN Women’s Commission on the Status of Women. Business leaders can also play a significant role by hiring women, developing their skills, creating benefits plans that recognize the role of women in society, and paying women equally. Global progress in gender equity thus depends on the right global perspective and action at the government and business levels.