Achieving Full Gender Equality Will Take 300 Years At Current Rate: UN Report

A report from the United Nations (UN) revealed that at the current rate of progress it could take close to 300 years to achieve full gender equality. The study revealed that gender disparity was worsening in the face of global crises.

Crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, violent conflict, and the backlash against women’s reproductive health and rights widened the gender disparity.

Achieving full gender equality is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and countries will not meet the goal by the 2030 deadline.

Full Gender Equality Report

The Gender Snapshot 2022 report was published by UN Women and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA).

The Executive Director at UN Women Sima Bahous said, “The data show undeniable regressions in their lives made worse by the global crises – the incomes, safety, education and health.”

Bahous warned, “The longer we take to reverse this trend, the more it will cost us all.” According to the report, at the current rate of progress it will take up to 286 years to achieve full gender equality and close the gaps in legal protection and remove discriminatory laws.

The UN report also revealed that to eradicate child marriage by 2030, the progress will have to be 17 times faster than in the last decade. Girls from the poorest rural households and in conflict-affected areas are expected to suffer the most.

It is expected to take 140 years for women to achieve equal representation in leadership positions in the workplace, and 40 years to achieve equal representation in national parliaments.

The report also revealed that women lost roughly 800 billion dollars in income globally due to the pandemic. A girl's future earnings can increase by up to 20 percent with each additional year of schooling. This further leads to poverty reduction, better maternal health, lower child mortality, and reduced violence against women.

Assistant Secretary-General at UN DESA Maria Francesa Spatolisano said, “Cascading global crises are putting the achievement of the SDGs in jeopardy." She added that global crises disproportionately impact vulnerable population groups, in particular women and girls.

Spatolisano added, “Gender equality is a foundation for achieving all SDGs and it should be at the heart of building back better.”

Suggested Reading: How The Jobs Summit Shifted Gender Equality From Sidelines To Mainstream