Egypt has been ranked 136th out of 145 countries in terms of gender equality, making it the tenth worst in the world, in the World Economic Forum’s annual Global Gender Gap report. The report aggregates various indicators in four key areas – economy, politics, health and education – to highlight the degree to which resources are distributed equitably between men and women in each of the surveyed countries. Egyptian women constitute only seven percent of legislators, senior officials and managers, and hold 12 percent of Egypt’s ministerial positions. Women also lag behind men in most other indicators, such as labor force participation (26 percent of women versus 79 percent of men), estimated earned income (Purchasing Power Parity USD 5,218 for women versus PPP USD 17,353 for men) and literacy rate (65 percent among women versus 82 percent among men). The report also notes that none of Egypt’s heads of state in the past 50 years has been a woman – a characteristic shared with countries such as Sweden and the United States, which ranked fourth and 28th, respectively. In terms of rights and norms, the data also painted a gloomy picture…
Egypt Ranked Tenth Worst Country in Annual Gender Equality Report
November 21, 2015
