Gender equality woefully off track, new UN report reveals

Women continue to face systemic barriers to entering political life.

The UN report highlights the persistent concentration of political power among men, finding that six in seven countries are currently led by men.

Indeed, the cost of running for office can exceed 100 times a country’s average per capita income, excluding many women before the race even begins. In some countries, up to eight in 10 women running for office also face violence in public life.

Even when women do enter government, they are disproportionately steered away from the portfolios that hold the highest security and economic power. Close to nine in 10 defence ministers and more than eight in 10 finance ministers are men.

Beyond government, women make up only six per cent of CEOs globally and lead fewer than 20 per cent of the highest courts, leaving the decisions shaping business, law, employment, and the global economy overwhelmingly in the hands of men.

This imbalance seriously undermines democracy as a country cannot fully uphold human rights or democratic principles while half its population lacks an equal voice in leadership and decision-making, the report stresses.