[Bbang Gubneun Tajagi] Can Men Also Become President?

The Secret of Sprakar, Iceland, the Top Country for Gender Equality

Iceland is called a "women's paradise." There is a law that requires the gender ratio on the board of directors of companies with more than 50 employees to be at least 6 to 4. It is also the world's first country to outlaw companies paying men more than women.

They were not born with an innate awareness of gender equality. Vigd?s Finnbogad?ttir had to undergo more thorough scrutiny in other respects than her male opponents in the 1980 Icelandic presidential election. She was a breast cancer survivor who had fully recovered after a mastectomy. In a TV debate, she was asked, "Do you think having only one breast would be a disadvantage as president?"

Confidently stating, "As president, I do not breastfeed the nation," Vigd?s became the first president of Iceland. In that regard, she naturally became a role model for many people. The young people who grew up while Vigd?s held the presidency for 16 years grew up thinking that having one breast missing or being divorced was no problem for being the head of state. The number of Icelandic women running for elected office has steadily increased, and many of them grew up during the tenure of the first female president. As children, they thought the head of state could be a woman, just as their father was a man.

The author, a businesswoman, writer, mother of four, and wife of the current president of Iceland, shows her country's successful progress toward gender equality through "Sprakkar." It is an Icelandic word meaning "extraordinary women" or "outstanding women." They take pride in their achievements so far but want more Sprakkar to be born. Patriarchy remains strong and deeply rooted, and reports of domestic violence increased significantly during the COVID-19 period. Despite the gender quota law for corporate boards, there are no female CEOs among companies listed on the stock exchange.

Iceland's obsession with gender equality is not because they are particularly moral or politically correct. Gender equality is not only ethically right but also economically beneficial. Iceland is similar to Korea in having an open economy, democracy, a high level of education, an international mindset, and an advanced technological society. The isolated environment of an island (Korea is effectively an island blocked to the north) and harsh natural conditions demand that all human resources maximize their potential.

In Iceland, companies with male CEOs had a significantly higher rate of attracting investment than those with female CEOs. It is hard to rule out the possibility that gender bias acts as an obstacle to filtering out companies unsuitable for investment. In such cases, discrimination results in betraying profits. Marel, a company providing solutions for meat, fish, and poultry processing industries, is one of Iceland's greatest success stories. The Icelandic industry generally recognizes that increasing gender and racial diversity leads to higher net profits. According to a 2020 McKinsey report, companies in the top quartile for gender diversity among executives were 25% more likely to outperform the average than those in the bottom quartile.

If there is a difference between Korea and Iceland, it is that Korea is an environment where it is difficult to expect the birth of "Sprakkar." Some symbolic role models of the Korean women's movement have collapsed due to scandals and factionalism. The void they left is now being filled not by new role models but by anti-feminism and blind meritocracy. Institutional measures to nurture Korea's Sprakkar face the threat of being discarded.

The Secret Sprakkar of Iceland, the World's Number One in Gender Equality / Written by Eliza Reid / Translated by Ji Eunhyun / 18,000 KRW

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