KHUSHAB/ PUNJAB:
The Global Gender Gap Report 2022, which ranks Iceland as the best performing and Afghanistan as the worst performing countries in term of gender equality, compels one to draw a parallel on how this ranking impacts each country’s performance. Increased female participation in all social spheres on equal footing with their male counterparts has led to many benefits in top-ranking countries. The top 5 countries in the report have consistently excelled in the Human Development Index (HDI), which ranks countries based on life expectancy, educational attainment and financial status of citizens. These countries seem to be on an upward trajectory in terms of GDP growth.
A closer look at Iceland reveals that aggressive implementation of parliamentary laws towards gender parity has resulted in this landmark achievement. The law mandates that women be given a 40% share in leadership positions in both public and private spheres along with equal rights across all other domains. Children are taught about gender equality during their early childhood education and schools are asked to maintain gender parity in all curricular and extracurricular activities.
It is also no surprise that the five worst ranked countries in the report occupy the lowest slots in the HDI ranking. Afghanistan’s situation is grim, partly due to women’s exclusion from almost all social domains. The country’s economy has almost collapsed. Females, constituting around 50% of the population, are confined within the four walls of their homes. These examples clearly indicate that increased female involvement across all spheres of life is essential for a country’s economic, educational, and healthcare prosperity.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 18th, 2022.
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