GGGR 2025

Global Gender Gap Report 202559Meanwhile, legislative bodies continue to make strides in institutionalizing a focus on gender equality. As of 2025, there are 161 parliamentary bodies, across 114 economies, with a gender equality mandate. Of these, 100 are chaired by women and 44 by men. Figure 2.10 offers a regional overview of how chairpersonship is distributed between men and women. The data shows that leadership of these bodies is shared equally between men and women only in Eastern Asia and the Pacific, and in Central Asia. In Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia, the responsibility for advancing gender equality through legislation is nearly balanced. In every other region, it is women who hold the prime role and responsibility for gender equality legislation. From a generational perspective, only 29 of the 161 bodies are chaired by individuals under the age of 45 – but only 10% of the bodies with younger leadership are in lower- and low-income economies, where demographic dividends would likely be greater. This not only highlights a gender gap but also a generational gap in shaping the policy frameworks that will define future progress. % Men Note Includes data for 114 economies.Source World Economic Forum calculations using Inter Parliamentary Union data.Share of women in leadership of gender equality parliamentary bodies, by region FIGURE 2.10 % Women0 10 40 20 30 50 60 70 80 90 100Central Asia Number of women and men appointed to speaker (%) Eastern Asia and the Pacific EuropeLatin America and the Caribbean Middle East and Northern Africa Northern AmericaSouthern AsiaSub-Saharan Africa