The World Economic Forum today released its sixth annual Global Gender Gap Report, which ranks 135 c...

1. The Best And Worst Countries For Women
The World Economic Forum today released its sixth annual Global Gender Gap Report, which ranks
135 countries, comprising 93% of the world's population, by measures of gender equality. In the last
six years, 85% of the surveyed nations have improved their equality ratios, but women everywhere
continue to face barriers to equality in wages and political representation.
"A world where women make up less than 20% of the global decision-makers," says Klaus Schwab,
founder and chairman of the World Economic Forum, "is a world that is missing a huge opportunity
for growth and ignoring an untapped reservoir of potential."
To determine the best and worst countries for women's equality, the group considered 14 variables
in four categories: women's access to basic and higher education; women's health and survival by
measures of life expectancy and sex ratio; equality of economic opportunity and participation; and
political empowerment.
At the top of the list, Iceland is ranked No. 1 for the third consecutive year. It is the top-ranked
nation in women's educational attainment and political representation. As one of the first countries
to give women the right to vote in 1915, Iceland currently has 43% female parliament members and
has had a female head of state for 18 of the past 50 years. Current Prime Minister Johanna
Sigurdardottir was appointed in 2009. With 81% of women in the workforce, Iceland also features
one of the narrowest labor force participation gaps.
"Like the Nordic countries generally, Iceland has a long tradition of supporting women's
empowerment," says Saadia Zahidi, a report co-author and senior director of the World Economic
Forum's Women Leaders and Gender Parity Programme.
http://links.ezinemark.com/view/the-best-and-worst-countries-for-women-56d0f9bfbf8.html