Gender
Introduction
Five Challenges, One Solution: Women
From unprecedented population ageing to increasing unemployment, from global leadership imbalances to persisting conflicts, from resource scarcity to volatile global food supplies, the world faces a series of interconnected challenges. The Global Agenda Council on Women’s Empowerment aims to highlight how women’s empowerment is a part of the solutions to these challenges. This compendium outlines how women’s advancement may impact and provide solutions to five specific global challenges:DemographyLeadershipFood Security and AgricultureSustainability and Resource...
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March 15, 2013
Leaning in the right direction for women
Saadia Zahidi discusses the changing role of women in today’s society
Since 2012, two publications have generated tremendous debate about the role of highly skilled women in the economy and society. The Atlantic magazine published Anne-Marie Slaughter’s article “Why Women Still Can’t Have it All”, and Sheryl Sandberg’s new book is called Lean In.
Simply put, Slaughter argues that women are not getting an even playing field from businesses and governments, and that women do not necessarily want to aim for leadership positions given their societal expectations and pressures. Sandberg, on...
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March 8, 2013
So can women have it all?
Outside forces shape a woman’s choices whether she realizes it or not, says Laura Liswood of the Council of Women World Leaders.
Much has been written and discussed about women’s ability to have it all – meaning both career and family. Anne-Marie Slaughter’s July/August 2012 Atlantic Monthly article turned the volume up even louder on the debate.
I attended a session recently where this issue was the main topic. At least 12 successful women described their life circumstances and the choices they made. It was highly personal and, as my English teacher would say, ad hominem, or, more accurately...
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January 25, 2013
Why technology is the future for girls
In the developing world, nearly 25% fewer girls and women are online than boys and men – closing this gap will change their futures, argues Nigel Chapman, CEO of Plan International.
Should access to a computer or a mobile phone be a basic human right? A controversial question perhaps but, nowadays, as technology leaps ahead into previously unimagined realms, one can argue that to be ill-educated in information and communications technology is to be immediately disadvantaged for life and work in the modern world. You only have to look at the news from last week’s annual technology...
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January 24, 2013
Why we should invest more in the education of girls
Shashi Tharoor is India’s Minister of State for Human Resource Development. His most recent book is Pax Indica: India and the World of the 21st Century.
NEW DELHI – One of the more difficult questions I found myself being asked when I was a United Nations under-secretary-general, especially when addressing a general audience, was: “What is the single most important thing that can be done to improve the world?”
It’s the kind of question that tends to bring out the bureaucrat in even the most direct of communicators, as one feels obliged to explain the complexity of the challenges confronting...
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December 19, 2012
The Global Gender Gap Report 2012
Saadia Zahidi, Senior Director, Head of Constituents at the World Economic Forum presents the results of the Global Gender Gap Report 2012.
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October 22, 2012
The Global Gender Gap Report 2012
The Global Gender Gap Index introduced by the World Economic Forum in 2006, is a framework for capturing the magnitude and scope of gender-based disparities and tracking their progress. The Index benchmarks national gender gaps on economic, political, education- and health-based criteria, and provides country rankings that allow for effective comparisons across regions and income groups, and over time. The rankings are designed to create greater awareness among a global audience of the challenges posed by gender gaps and the opportunities created by reducing them. The methodology and...
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October 16, 2012
What if women made up half of the world’s decision makers?
Laura Liswood argues that our ability to solve problems would improve if women were better represented. The interview is part of the Risk Response Network’s “What if?” series.What is your main field of expertise? Developing policies of diversity and inclusion that lead to women’s empowerment.Given your research, what would you say is the most under-appreciated risk? The most under-appreciated risk is that organisations, corporations, countries and their governments are too slow to realise that women have to be included in the decision making on issues that impact us all. Take...
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June 6, 2012
What about including women in Africa’s transformation
I left the closing plenary of the World Economic Forum on Africa in Addis Ababa last Friday with a profound sense of optimism. Josette Sheeran, the Forum’s new Vice-Chairman, moderated a wonderfully inspirational panel with African Young Global Leaders and Global Shapers. She asked: “What if, what about and if you could…”For three days on limited sleep, we conversed about Africa – what needs to be done, what we’re doing well, where we’re going and the speed at which we’re travelling. South Africa’s Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan, delivered his heartfelt remarks, reminding us that there...
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May 16, 2012
Women leading the way to a new Africa
The World Economic Forum has always provided a platform for constructive discussion on complex issues, even in challenging times. I welcome this chance to collaborate and expect this year’s World Economic Forum on Africa to explore issues of critical importance to the people of Africa, and to further the dialogue that leads us to durable solutions.As an African woman, naturally I am interested in how we can use this forum to advance progress for and by women across the continent. Here, we can delve deeper into the complex socioeconomic situations that African women face daily.As we work to...
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May 9, 2012
International Women’s Day 2012
Saadia Zahidi, Senior Director, Head of the World Economic Forum’s Women Leader and Gender Parity Programme, visited the New York Stock Exchange with partner companies on International Women’s Day 2012. Saadia brought the day’s financial trading to a close by ringing The Closing Bell.
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March 9, 2012
Balancing a career in macro-economics with bringing up twins
My four year old daughter tells her friends that her Mum cycles to China for work. I’m glad she already has a global perspective. It makes it worthwhile on the mornings when my husband and I are struggling to get her, and her two year old sister – and ourselves – out the door.When the letter came through from the World Economic Forum with my nomination as a Young Global Leader, I did a double-take. It was a delightful surprise to be invited to participate with such an inspiring group of people.On top of it, I’d just discovered that I was pregnant with twins but in 2012...
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March 8, 2012
Why can’t a woman be more like a man?
Could Professor Higgins’ song ‘Why can’t a woman be more like a man?’ in the musical ‘My Fair Lady’ provide a hint why the glass ceiling still seems entrenched throughout cross sections of society, and why male leaders far outweigh their female counterparts?In my time running Women in Technology, I have hosted numerous networking events to not only assist women further their careers, but to also increase their confidence when operating in the largely male dominated IT industry. And what has become increasingly apparent is that there is a feeling – at least amongst some – that in order to...
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March 7, 2012
Why we need more women leaders
As I’ve walked among the world’s leaders in US Congressional corridors, Davos’ icy streets and Oxford’s cobblestoned paths, there has been one constant: I have been one of a handful of women in a crowd of men. Sometimes I have been the only woman in the room. So it is quite a strange sensation to look at my new Young Global Leader community and see that a remarkable 41% of my cohort – 78 of the 192 leaders —are now female.How unique. And how good for the world.Given the severity of challenges confronting our global society, we can no longer afford to leave half our brains, half our...
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March 7, 2012
Tech Tuesday: Renewable oil for food, health sciences and fuels
Tech Tuesday is an ongoing series profiling the Forum’s Technology Pioneers. The Tech Pioneers are companies that have been recognized by the Forum for groundbreaking and innovative approaches in tackling some of the world’s most wicked problems. Each week we will showcase some of the 2012 Tech Pioneers. You can learn more about the Technology Pioneer Programme on the Forum’s website.Solazyme’s industrial biotechnology platform accelerates biofuel production by micro-algaeSolazyme’s unique contribution to the search for cost-effective biofuels is its adaptation of standard industrial...
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March 6, 2012
Closing the gender gap case by case
Women make up one-half of the potential human capital available in any economy and, in many developed and emerging economies, are increasingly as educated as or more educated than men. And yet, women are consistently under-represented in the formal workforce, particularly in leadership positions.While we have come a long way in our understanding of the economic gender gap in recent years, women are still consistently under-represented in the formal workforce, particularly in leadership positions, and there is a sense that change is taking place very slowly.There is a strong business case for...
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March 6, 2012
Measuring the success of gender equality
Last year the World Economic Forum put gender parity at the top of the agenda at the Annual Meeting in Davos by introducing a new mandate requiring each strategic partner to bring at least one woman among their five delegates. It signalled an understanding that diverse perspectives and the ability to seek out diverse viewpoints is becoming a business essential. It brought to the debate the idea that an increasingly globalized world demands a new style of inclusive leadership.Outside of Davos, encouraging best practice diversity and inclusiveness measures will equip businesses to compete...
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March 6, 2012
Prisoners, patience and women in leadership
A decade ago, eight inmates in the most violent prison in South Africa started an AIDS orphan adoption programme. All men, the prisoners of the “Group of Hope” had murdered for rage, gangs, robbery and racial hatred. They were white, black and mixed race; Muslims, Christians and atheists. They included the man who killed Marika de Klerk, former President De Klerk’s ex-wife.Against all odds, the programme has changed the lives of hundreds of prisoners and orphans. The subject of my next book, it is astonishing for obvious reasons.But the most astonishing fact lies not in the bizarre inmate-...
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March 6, 2012
Balancing out the corporate world
Saudi Arabia and female leadership are not exactly words that seamlessly flow after each other. After all, my country, despite recent reforms, is still mostly known as a country lagging behind others in female empowerment.And yet, I and others like me, do exist, do work, do lobby, and do write about female empowerment in the middle of this masculine heartland; proving that female empowerment and leadership can be found and nourished anywhere.Female leadership challenges, however, are not confined to Saudi. One of the biggest issues facing the world is that despite increasing numbers of...
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March 5, 2012
From Downton Abbey to Davos
I admit it: I am addicted to the British drama Downton Abbey. My hero, my Grandma, was born in that era!Like most of America, I tuned in to watch the Season 2 premiere in January, right before I left for Davos. This year, however, I watched the series with a new perspective – as a new mother of a baby girl called Lilly. Throughout the premiere, I continuously thought of my daughter, imagining if she had been born at the turn of the century, into a world in which women and girls (both rich and poor) could not speak for themselves, protect their health, and pursue their dreams. I...
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March 5, 2012
Women, water and the ugly global crisis we’re not talking about
Imagine you’re a young woman in an urban slum, perhaps Nairobi or Mumbai. You spend several hours each day waiting for water to arrive on a truck. When that truck arrives, the driver charges a price that he alone sets. You cannot control the price, how full the truck is, how many people are in line, when the truck arrives, or the quality of the water. You are unable to take on a job with fixed hours because you can’t predict these factors with regularity. To make matters worse, you never know the quality of the water coming from the truck, so you filter and treat it as best as you can, but...
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March 1, 2012
The Global Gender Gap Report 2011
The Global Gender Gap Index introduced by the World Economic Forum in 2006, is a framework for capturing the magnitude and scope of gender-based disparities and tracking their progress. The Index benchmarks national gender gaps on economic, political, education- and health-based criteria, and provides country rankings that allow for effective comparisons across regions and income groups, and over time. The rankings are designed to create greater awareness among a global audience of the challenges posed by gender gaps and the opportunities created by reducing them. The methodology and...
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October 28, 2011
Global Competitiveness
The Global Competitiveness Report 2012-2013 assesses the competitiveness landscape of 144 economies, providing insight into the drivers of their productivity and prosperity. The Report series remains the most comprehensive assessment of national competitiveness worldwide. Access the data platform to visualize and download the data.This year’s report findings show that Switzerland tops the overall rankings in The Global Competitiveness Report for the fourth consecutive year. Singapore remains in second position with Finland, in third position, overtaking Sweden 4th. These and other...
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September 7, 2011
The Global Gender Gap Report 2008
In the midst of the current economic downturn, policymakers and business leaders are struggling to manage short-term shocks, prepare their economies to perform well in a medium-term economic landscape characterized by growing volatility and develop institutions and regulations to stave off such crises in the future. It is more important now than ever before for countries and companies to pay heed to one of the fundamental cornerstones of economic growth available to them—the skills and talent of their human resource pool. Women not only make up one half of this potential talent base, they...
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June 28, 2011
The Global Gender Gap Report 2007
At the World Economic Forum we recognize that the advancement of women is an important economic, business and societal issue with a significant impact on the growth of nations. Thus, for several years, we have explicitly incorporated aspects of gender equality into our measures of competitiveness and fostered dialogue within our Women Leaders Programme. More recently, we launched our Global Gender Gap Report series, aimed at capturing the magnitude of the gap between women and men in four critical areas: economic participation and opportunity, political empowerment, educational attainment and...
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June 28, 2011
The Global Gender Gap Report 2009
Over the last year, the world has seen the biggest recession in almost a century. It is clear that recovery will require, among other things, the best of talent, ideas and innovation. It is therefore more important now than ever before for countries and companies to pay heed to one of the fundamental cornerstones of economic growth available to them—the skills and talent of their female human resource pool. As consumers, voters, employees and employers, women will be integral to global economic recovery. However, it is not only the financial and...
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June 23, 2011
Corporate Gender Gap
The World Economic Forum’s Corporate Gender Gap Report 2010 is based on a survey of 600 of the heads of Human Resources at the world’s largest employers. The survey contained over 25 questions and assessed companies on representation of women within their establishments and the use of gender-equality practices such as measurement and target-setting, work-life balance policies and mentorship and training. The survey also asked respondents to identify the biggest barriers to women’s leadership and their opinion on the probable effects of the economic downturn on women’s employment in their...
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November 1, 2010
The Corporate Gender Gap 2010
Leading companies are failing to capitalize on the talents of women in the workforce, according to the World Economic Forum’s Corporate Gender Gap Report 2010. It is the first study to cover the world’s largest employers in 20 countries and benchmark them against the gender equality policies that most companies should have in place but are in fact widely missing.The report is based on a survey of 600 of the heads of Human Resources at the world’s largest employers. The survey contained over 25 questions and assessed companies on representation of women within their establishments and the use...
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November 1, 2010
The Global Gender Gap Report 2010
Nordic countries Iceland, Norway, Finland and Sweden continue to demonstrate the greatest equality between men and women, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2010.The Global Gender Gap Index was created with the specific purpose of being comparable across time. The 2010 Report aggregates five years of data and seeks to reveal country progress in a transparent manner. By doing this, we hope this Report will serve as a call to action to the international community to pool its knowledge and resources and to leverage the current unique window of opportunity so that...
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October 20, 2010
Global Gender Gap
The Global Gender Gap Report 2012 benchmarks national gender gaps of 135 countries on economic, political, education- and health-based criteria. The Global Gender Gap Index was developed in 2006, partially to address the need for a consistent and comprehensive measure of gender equality that can track a country’s progress over time. The index points to potential role models by revealing those countries that – within their region or income group – are leaders in dividing resources more equitably between women and men than other countries, regardless of the overall level of resources available....
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October 19, 2010
The Gender Agenda: Putting Parity into Practice
The Gender Agenda: Putting Parity into PracticeCompanies perform better if their female talent is equally integrated, but a decade of data reflects only marginal change in this area.How can we move beyond awareness towards action?In partnership with the World Economic Forum, CNBC hosts this debate focusing on gender parity.Key Points• Women comprise one-half of human capital; gender parity in the workforce and particularly in senior management is not a luxury good• In the United States, women now comprise one-half of all college graduates, but often disappear soon after entering ...
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January 30, 2010
