South Korea Ranks 102nd in Global Gender Equality... 1st Place is Iceland

Davos Forum Global Gender Gap 2021 Report Released

[Image source= AFP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] In the 'Global Gender Gap Report 2021' released on the 31st by the World Economic Forum (WEF, Davos Forum), South Korea ranked 102nd in the gender equality country rankings. This is a rise of 6 places compared to the previous survey announced in December 2019.

Iceland secured the top spot in gender equality for the 12th consecutive time. Iceland's gender gap closure rate was 89.2%, while South Korea's was 68.7%.

Germany ranked 11th, France 16th, the United States 30th, China 107th, and Japan 120th, with Afghanistan ranking last at 156th among the surveyed countries.

The Davos Forum predicted that, based on current trends, the point at which political, economic, and social gaps between men and women will disappear is expected to be after 135.6 years, in the mid-22nd century.

In the previous survey, the global gender gap closure was expected after 99.5 years. The Davos Forum analyzed that the reason for the 36-year increase in the expected time to achieve gender equality is due to COVID-19. The pandemic's economic and social shockwaves have placed women in a more vulnerable position than men in the labor market, and due to lockdowns and curfews, the time spent at home has greatly increased, leading to a sharp rise in women's household and childcare burdens.

The region with the most severe gender inequality worldwide is South Asia, which includes India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan.

South Asia requires 195.4 years to achieve gender equality, followed by East Asia, which includes South Korea, China, and Japan, at 165.1 years?longer than the Middle East and North Africa at 142.4 years. In contrast, Western Europe has the shortest expected time at 52.1 years, followed by North America at 61.5 years, and Latin America and the Caribbean at 68.9 years.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.