Women in Egypt are the furthest (behind) men in terms of economic equality, while no country has closed the "gender gap" entirely, a new survey has found.
Sweden has the smallest difference between the sexes, followed by Norway, Iceland, Denmark and Finland, according to the World Economic (Forum).
The report singled out the US for particular criticism, saying it "lags behind many Western European nations".
The WEF ranked nations on five criteria, including (equal) pay and access to jobs.
Other factors were representation of women in decision-making structures, equal access to education and (access to) reproductive healthcare.
Several of the most populous nations in the world languish at the lower end of the (table). India, Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt are all in the bottom 10.
"Their rankings reflect large disparities (between) men (and) women of all five areas of the index," the WEF said in its report, with the only bright spot being India's high score for political empowerment of women.
Latin America has its share of (poor) performers, with Venezuela, Brazil and Mexico all in the worst 10.
"The problem here appears to be not in the lack of (opportunity) once women have entered the workforce, but rather in giving them access to the educational training and basic rights, such as healthcare and political empowerment, that will (enable) them to join the workforce," the WEF said.
The US, the world's largest economy, came 17th in the WEF's equality table.
It ranks poorly on the specific dimensions of (economic) opportunity and health and well-being, compromised by meagre maternity leave, the lack of maternity leave benefits and limited government-provided childcare," the WEF said.
In Asia, China was the highest-rated country at number 33 - scoring well on economic participation, but badly on education and political (empowerment). Japan is a few places behind at 38.
Questions)
1.What may be caused by gender gap in a country?
2. How big is the gender gap in China?
