In 2006, we launched the first edition of the Global Gender Gap Report at the World Economic Forum with two simple foundations: that economies would hinder their competitiveness if they failed to invest in all of their human capital, and that consistently measuring gender gaps would help leaders focus their efforts on advancing parity within and across countries.

Two decades later, those premises remain as relevant as ever. Over this period, the data and key messages of the report have benefited from widespread readership and engagement, while its consistent methodology has provided a unique record of how gender gaps have evolved over time. Across education, economic opportunity, political participation and health, global gender parity has advanced steadily. That progress has been driven by policy reforms and workplace improvements, advocacy and civil society action, shifts in investment and capital allocation, and the daily efforts of countless women and men around the world.

Yet twenty years of evidence also tell us something important: progress is possible, but it is neither automatic nor fast enough. No economy has yet achieved full gender parity. Over these two decades, the world has experienced a global financial crisis, rapid digital transformation, major cultural and political shifts, a pandemic and unprecedented geopolitical volatility. These forces have tested the resilience of progress and, in some cases, reversed it. Today, we find ourselves at the threshold of another era of profound transformation.

A shifting geoeconomic order, the emergence of artificial intelligence, and a rapidly changing climate and energy landscape are reshaping economies, politics, jobs, health, and pathways to economic mobility. At the same time, in many parts of the world, basic needs for food, water, electricity, shelter, health, education and safety remain unmet for millions of people, disproportionately women and girls. Against this backdrop, gender parity is not peripheral to the challenges ahead. It is fundamental to human development and to unlocking the talent, innovation, creativity and resilience economies will need to navigate this new era.

The 20th edition of the Global Gender Gap Report provides global, regional and economy-level analysis for 2026, alongside a twenty-year retrospective on progress in closing gender gaps. It also provides deeper analysis of labour-market gaps, political empowerment and evolving legal frameworks, and presents unique data tracing the next frontiers of parity – including on senior leadership, representation across industries, participation in AIrelated roles and representation in financial markets.

One of the clearest lessons of the past twenty years is the value of consistent measurement. Objective data creates visibility, enables comparison, identifies where progress is taking place and helps leaders understand where greater action is needed. But measurement alone does not create change. At the World Economic Forum’s Centre for the New Economy and Society, we complement thought leadership with a portfolio of initiatives spanning economic inclusion, human capital and growth. Each provides a global platform bringing together businesses, governments, international organizations and academic experts. Together, the Centre’s insights, frameworks and collaboration platforms aim to translate evidence into action and help shape a more inclusive new economy.

For this 20th edition, we welcome the continued data collaboration and contributions of our partners at LinkedIn and the World Bank. We are deeply grateful for the dedication and expertise of the core project team – Kim Piaget and Yanjun Guo – and for Silja Baller’s leadership across all of our work on economic inclusion at the Forum’s Centre for the New Economy and Society. Finally, we thank the members of the Gender Parity Sprint Initiative for their commitment to shaping an economic future that creates opportunities for all.

The past twenty years have shown that gender gaps can close. The task for the next twenty is to close them faster. As a new economic era takes shape, we have an opportunity to ensure that its institutions, technologies and sources of growth draw on the talents of all people. Gender parity is not simply an outcome of progress; it is one of the foundations on which future progress will be built.