A Step Backwards: India's Performance in the Global Gender Gap Report 2024

The quest for gender parity has seen incremental progress globally, but the pace remains disappointingly slow. According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2024 released by the World Economic Forum (WEF) last week, the world has closed 68.5% of its gender gap, a mere 0.1% improvement from the 68.4% closure reported in 2023. At this rate, full gender parity is expected to take 134 years, stretching to roughly five generations beyond the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target—a stark reminder of the challenges that lie ahead.

Iceland continues to lead the world in gender equality, retaining its number one position with a 93.5% gender gap closure. Remarkably, it remains the only economy to have closed over 90% of its gender gap. In contrast, India has slipped two places, now ranking 129 out of 146 countries. This drop comes after a significant improvement in 2022 when India jumped eight places to rank 127. In 2024, the country has closed 64.1% of its gender gap, according to the report, indicating a pressing need for policy-makers to address this issue more aggressively.

The report highlights a "slight regression" in India, primarily attributed to "small declines" in education and political empowerment. With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, even minor setbacks translate into substantial numbers, underscoring the urgency for corrective measures. Although India has shown a slight improvement in economic participation and opportunity over the last few years, it still falls short of its 2012 score of 46%, needing an additional 6.2 percentage points to catch up.

One crucial area that demands attention is the labour force participation rate, currently at 45.9%. Bridging this gap requires a comprehensive approach, including ensuring that girls remain in higher education, equipping them with job skills, ensuring workplace safety, and supporting their continued employment post-marriage by promoting shared domestic responsibilities. In education, the gap between men and women’s literacy rates stands at a significant 17.2 percentage points, placing India 124th in this indicator.

India has seen some progress in political empowerment, yet women’s representation in Parliament remains disappointingly low. The recently elected Lok Sabha saw nearly 800 women contestants, but the number of women Members of Parliament has dropped to 74 from 78 in 2019, representing just 13.6% of the total 543 members. These figures are concerning, especially in light of the Women’s Reservation Bill, 2023, which aims to reserve one-third of the seats in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies for women, but has yet to take effect.

The WEF’s Managing Director, Saadia Zahidi, emphasized the need for governments to create a conducive environment for businesses and civil society to collaborate in making gender parity an economic priority. For under-performing countries like India, her words serve as a crucial reminder of the work that lies ahead. The path to gender parity is a long one, but with concerted efforts and the right policies, progress can be accelerated, and the dream of equality can become a reality for future generations.