Global Gender Gap Index 2025

Why in News?

• According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2025, India has slipped two places to 131st rank out of 148 countries, with a gender parity score of 64.4%.

Key Highlights:

• The 19th edition of the Global Gender Gap Report 2025 was released by the World Economic Forum (WEF) on 12 June 2025.
• India has dropped from 129th (2024) to 131st rank in 2025.
• Despite the drop in rank, India’s overall gender parity score improved slightly by 0.3 percentage points.

Ranking & Score Summary (India):

• India is ranked 131st out of 148 countries.
• India’s parity score of 64.4% is below the global average of 68.8%.
• In South Asia, India ranks fifth.

South Asia Ranking (2025):

India's position in the four major dimensions of the Global Gender Gap Index

1. Economic Participation and Opportunity
   • India’s Score: 40.7% (+0.9% from 2024)
   • Rank: 144th (among the bottom five)
   • Female labor force participation: 45.9% (highest so far)
   • Estimated earned income parity: 28.6% → 29.9%
   • Still among the most unequal globally, along with Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, and Sudan, where women have access to less than one-third of economic resources compared to men.
2. Educational Attainment
   • Score: 97.1%
   • Improvement in female literacy and enrollment in higher education.
   • One of India’s best-performing areas.
3. Health and Survival
   • Slight improvement in score.
   • Better sex ratio and healthcare access have increased female life expectancy.
   • Still not at complete parity.
4. Political Empowerment
   • India’s weakest performing dimension.
   • Score declined by 0.6 points.
   • Female MPs: 14.7% → 13.8%
   • Women ministers: 6.5% → 5.6%
   • In 2024, 74 women MPs (13.6%) were elected to the 18th Lok Sabha, down from 14.4% in 2019.
   • India’s best score in this area was 30% in 2019.

Global Context:

• Global average gender gap score: 68.8%
• Post-COVID progress: Best so far since the pandemic.
• At the current rate, gender parity will take 123 years to achieve worldwide, says WEF.

Top 5 Countries (2025):

What is the Global Gender Gap Index?

Definition:

• The Global Gender Gap Index is an annual index published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) that measures gender-based disparities across countries.
• The report was first launched in 2006.

Objective:

The key objectives of this index are:

• To assess the progress toward gender equality.
• To inform policy-makers on areas needing improvement.
• To compare countries in terms of gender parity.
• To track global progress in improving the status of women.

Publishing Body:-

• Institution: World Economic Forum (WEF)
• Report Name: Global Gender Gap Report
• Frequency: Annual
• 2025 Edition: 19th edition (Released on 12 June 2025)

Four Key Dimensions of Assessment:

Scoring & Ranking Method:

• Scoring: Each country receives a score between 0 and 1
  • 0 = Complete inequality
  • 1 = Complete equality
• Ranking: Countries with higher scores are ranked higher.

World Economic Forum (WEF)

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-profit organization that brings together leaders from the public and private sectors to discuss and collaborate on global economic, social, environmental, and technological challenges.

Main Objectives of WEF:-

• Promote policy dialogue on global issues
• Encourage public-private partnerships
• Foster global cooperation on issues like economic inequality, climate change, health, gender equality
• Support innovation, technology advancement, and sustainable development

Key Programs/Reports by WEF: