Gender gap closes at fastest rate since pandemic but full parity remains 123 years away

World Economic Forum report mentions Bangladesh is top performer in South Asia

- BY SATYAKI CHAKRABORTY

The global gender gap has closed to 68.8%, marking the strongest annual advancement since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yet full parity remains 123 years away at current rates, according to the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report 2025, released on June 12 in Geneva.. Iceland leads the rankings for the 16th year running, followed by Finland, Norway, the United Kingdom and New Zealand.

The 19th edition of the report, which covers 148 economies, reveals both encouraging momentum and persistent structural barriers facing women worldwide. The progress made in this edition was driven primarily by significant strides in political empowerment and economic participation, while educational attainment and health and survival maintained near-parity levels above 95%. However, despite women representing 41.2% of the global workforce, a stark leadership gap persists with women holding only 28.8% of top leadership positions.

"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, 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."

Iceland maintains its position as the world’s most gender-equal economy for the 16th consecutive year, with 92.6% of its gender gap closed ~ the only economy to surpass 90% parity. Finland (87.9%), Norway (86.3%), the UK (83.8%) and New Zealand (82.7%) round out the top five positions. All top 10 economies have closed at least 80% of their gender gaps, the only economies to achieve this milestone. European nations dominate the top 10 rankings with eight positions - Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden have maintained top 10 status since 2006.