The U.S. Scores 43th in Global Gender Equality

Each year the World Economic Forum produces the Global Gender Gap (GGG) which ranks 146 countries on a variety of benchmarks that compare male and female quality of life. In general, the GGG scores nations on gender parity, or more generally, how they rank on a scale of realized feminism or feminist-friendly qualities.

For 2024 the U.S. ranked 43th on the Global Gender Gap, which I suppose is not surprising.

Interestingly, countries that rank highly for women’s rights also score consistently well when it comes to democracy, peacefulness and prosperity.

Some of the measures compiled for the GGG index:

Do women have the same rights and protections as men?
Are women safe from rape, interpersonal violence and other violations?
How good is women’s access to health care?
Do women have the same freedoms as men?
Are women equally represented in schools and in the workplace?
How big is the employment wage gap?

There are other useful indices. The Women Peace and Security Index (WPS), assembled by Georgetown University, ranks 177 countries on their inclusion, justice, and safety for women. In 2024, the United States ranked 37th.

Then there is the World Population Review which ranks 144 countries according to population size, but also happiness and other variables. The United States in 2024 ranked 23th for happiness.

The Global Peace Index, an annual report from the Australia-based Institute for Economics and Peace, in 2024 ranked 163 nations and independent territories along such factors as domestic crime, internal security, military conflict and the degree of militarization. The United States ranked a dreadful 132nd.

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Finally, the World Health Organization (WHO) prepares an annual report on a variety of health-related topics. Regarding maternal health and mortality, the United States ranked 55th for 2020, the latest report available. This is among the highest (or poorest) of any developed nation.

Iceland

If you guessed Iceland as number one in the WEF Global Gender Gap rankings, you are correct. That’s number one is women’s rights and gender equity. This is an island nation in the North Atlantic with a population of just under 400,000. Here are the specific rankings:

Women Peace and Security Index: #4
Global Gender Gap Report: #1
Maternal health care and survival: #4
World Happiness Report: #3
Global Peace Index: #1

How has Iceland achieved these remarkable results? There are a number of factors. Let’s start with paid maternity and paternity leave.

Icelandic mothers receive maternity leave for 13 weeks paid at 80%. Fathers receive paternity leave for 12 weeks paid at 80%. And each parent is eligible for an additional 26 weeks of paid parental leave paid at 80% of their regular salaries.

What about leadership roles? For almost half of the last fifty years, Iceland has had a female head of state, and in 2024 48% of its parliament members were female.

Consider the minimal wage gap. The Iceland wage gap between genders is smaller than most other countries. This is likely due to a 2018 law that requires companies with more than 25 employees to pay men and women equally for equal work.

Government? There is a Directorate of Equality reporting to the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour. The institution handles administration of all matters covered by laws on equality. Every four years a motion for a parliamentary resolution on a four-year gender equality action plan is submitted to parliament after consultation with the Directorate of Equality.

Gender autonomy? The Act on Gender Autonomy, introduced in 2019, provides for the right of persons to define their own gender, thereby guaranteeing the recognition of each individual’s gender identity. The objective of this Act is also to guard the rights of persons to physical autonomy. This includes the right to self-proclaimed “neutral identity.”

Sound too good to be true? Yes, there is a significant downside.

Some call it the Nordic paradox. Iceland has one of the highest rates of domestic violence against women of any developed nation. Close to 40% of Icelandic women will become victims of domestic violence by a current or past intimate partner at some point during their lifetimes. Compare this to 23% in the U.S. and 31% in Europe.

Some have speculated that this is the result of male backlash against female advancement and equality laws. Others point to problematic alcohol consumption patterns and inadequate action by the courts. Clearly, a major crack in what would otherwise be a feminist paradise.

Intervention in Early Childhood Education

One of the most remarkable gender equality efforts in Iceland is seen in early childhood education. Close to 8% of the nation’s nursery age children are enrolled in “gender compensation” schools, and the programs are catching on.

These pre-schools separate girls and boys and offer them opportunities to realize qualities traditionally associated with the opposite gender. Girls are encouraged to express harsh emotions like anger. Three year old girls stand outside and hurl cut logs onto a pile yelling “I am strong!” While boys apply nail polish and give each other gentle lotion massages.

This Hjalli teaching model was founded in 1989 by self-described radical feminist Margrét Pála Ólafsdóttir. By keeping the sexes apart, boys and girls are encouraged to develop their personalities and discover their interests without the pressures of conventional gender roles and stereotypes.

The program focuses on two poles of the gender spectrum where, it is proposed, the natural strengths of each gender tip over into weaknesses.

“According to Ólafsdóttir, girls’ sensitivity and caring natures can turn into self-pity and victimhood, while boys’ strength and power can become aggression or even violence.”

Boys often play with gender neutral dolls while girls run barefoot through the snow to build courage and overcome fear. One graduate of the school, now a mother herself and sending her daughter to the school, reflects on the impact of the experience:

“It’s such a powerful message, teaching [my daughter] that she is a leader, that she is strong and to love herself, that she has a voice.”

Perhaps such educational intervention will disrupt the Nordic paradox in Iceland and reduce or prevent domestic violence in coming generations. If this agenda is realized, Iceland will become a model for the world.

Nevertheless, Iceland consistently ranks the highest or very high on the gender-equality indices cited. Other Nordic nations rank similarly very high. These include Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland.

Curiously, these same nations consistently rank very high on the parameters of democracy, peacefulness and prosperity. How are these linked to women’s rights and gender equality? What do you think?

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Vic Caldarola is the founder and lead facilitator of the Shine a Light Men’s Project, a men’s mindfulness discussion program. He holds a PhD in Communication Studies.

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This post was previously published on medium.com.

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