Ireland has the 10th best gender equality gap in the world but global parity is 123 years away at the current pace of improvement, according to an annual report by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
The report found that Ireland’s gender equality has closed to 80.1 per cent, but the score was held back by the disimprovement in the number of women in political leadership positions in the State.
The global gender gap has closed to 68.8 per cent, marking the strongest annual advancement since the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the WEF’s Global Gender Gap Report 2025, released on Thursday.
The report, which covers 148 countries, shows that while “significant strides” have been made in political representation and economic participation, with near parity in a number of foundational metrics, “stark” gaps remain in women’s representation in top leadership positions.
Iceland retained its place as the world’s most equal economy from a gender perspective for the 16th year in a row, having closed its gender gap score to 92.6 per cent – with 100 per cent meaning gender parity.
The top five is rounded out by Finland (87.9 per cent), Norway (86.3 per cent), the UK (83.8 per cent) and one of just two non-European countries in the top 10, New Zealand (82.7 per cent).
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The other non-European country is Namibia, which placed behind Sweden and the Republic of Moldova, 81.7 per cent and 81.3 per cent, at 8th.
Ireland squeezed in to make its 18th top 10 appearance with a score of 80.1 per cent, just behind Germany at 80.3 per cent in ninth place.
The State’s score fell slightly, by 0.1 per cent, and dropped one rank in the index as a result, but has made a considerable improvement in its overall gender parity score since 2006, narrowing the gap by 6.8 per cent.
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In the same period, Ireland has narrowed its economic gap by 11.5 points, an improvement in the metric last year contributed to that growth in parity. We reached full gender parity in education four years ago and have maintained that level since.
Representation of women in senior economic roles decreased slightly this year, however, and the State’s score for political parity fell as a result of the reduction of women in ministerial positions, which decreased from 28.6 per cent to 21.4 per cent.
The countries with the worst gender parity, according to the study, were the Islamic Republic of Iran, which placed 145th of 148 countries with a score of 58.3 per cent; Chad, which placed 146th with a score of 57.1 per cent; and Sudan placed 147th with a scores of 57 per cent.
Pakistan was the state with the lowest level of gender equality, with a score of 56.7 per cent – which the study said was led by a decline in economic participation. The country saw a second consecutive regression in gender parity, with less than half of women being classified as literate.
“The evidence is clear,” said Saadia Zahidi, managing director of WEF. “Economies that have made decisive progress towards parity are positioning themselves for stronger, more innovative and more resilient economic progress.”
The index values are calculated based on gender parity in metrics measuring economic participation and opportunity; educational attainment; health and survival; and political empowerment.
