Global Gender Gap Report

Global Gender Gap Report

  • Context: World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap Report 2025 ranks India at 131 out of 148 countries with a gender parity score of 64.1%, showing a slight decline from last year; India remains among the lowest in South Asia while Bangladesh leads the region at 24th globally; global gender gap closed to 68.8%, but full parity projected in 123 years. 

  • Important Pointers: 

  • The report is released by: the World Economic Forum (WEF). 

  • It benchmarks gender-based gaps in four key areas: 

  • Economic Participation and Opportunity 

  • Educational Attainment 

  • Health and Survival 

  • Political Empowerment 

  • India-Specific Findings: 

  • India’s Global Rank (2025): 131 out of 148 countries, with a gender parity score of 64.1%. 

  • India’s Rank (2024): 129 out of 146 countries – marks a relative decline in parity ranking. 

  • Political Empowerment (India): 

  • Female MPs dropped from 14.7% to 13.8%. 

  • Female Ministers dropped from 6.5% to 5.6%. 

  • The indicator score for Ministerial roles is now at 5.9%, down from 30% in 2019. 

  • Labour Force Participation Rate (India): 45.9%, unchanged from last year. 

  • Educational Attainment (India): 

  • Score: 97.1% 

  • Driven by gains in female literacy and tertiary enrolment. 

  • Health and Survival (India): 

  • Improved due to better sex ratio at birth and healthy life expectancy. 

  • Despite improvement, overall life expectancy declined. 

  • India’s Overall Score Change: Improved by 0.3 points over the previous year. 

  • South Asia and Regional Context: 

  • India's South Asia Rank: Among lowest in the region, ahead of Maldives (138) and Pakistan (148) only. 

  • South Asia Regional Rank: 7th out of all regions, with an overall parity score of 64.6%. 

  • Top South Asian Performer: Bangladesh, ranked 24th globally, with 77.5% parity. 

  • Other South Asian Ranks: Bhutan: 119, Nepal: 125, Sri Lanka: 130, Maldives: 138, Pakistan: 148 (last). 

  • Economic Participation (South Asia): 

  • Score: 40.6% 

  • Gains: +9.1% in senior roles, +17.2% in technical roles 

  • Drop in estimated earned income parity: -7.8% 

  • Educational Attainment (South Asia): 

  • Regional score: 95.4% 

  • Literacy parity below 75% in Nepal and Pakistan 

  • Full parity in Maldives 

  • Health and Survival (South Asia): 

  • Score: 95.5% 

  • +0.9% in healthy life expectancy, but -1% in sex ratio at birth 

  • Political Empowerment (South Asia): 

  • Score: 26.8% (ranked 4th globally) 

  • Bangladesh only country with parity at the head-of-state level 

  • Bhutan and Maldives have <5% parliamentary parity 

  • Global-Level Findings: 

  • Global Gender Gap Closure: 68.8% closed – strongest post-COVID annual progress. 

  • Years to Full Parity (at current pace): 123 years. 

  •  Global Female Workforce Representation: 41.2% of total workforce. 

  • Global Leadership Gap: Women hold only 28.8% of top leadership roles. 

  • Top 5 Countries in Gender Parity (2025): 

  • Iceland (1st for 16th consecutive year) 

  • Finland 

  • Norway 

  • United Kingdom 

  • New Zealand 

  • Report Coverage: 19th edition, includes 148 economies.