Where It Pays To Be A Woman

To mark the upcoming anniversary of International Women's Day, Sarah Morrison investigates the best and worst places around the world to be a woman.

1 minute read

March 5, 2012, 11:00 AM PST

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


While conditions for women may be improving around the world, the pace of improvements and the "global gender gap" are cause for concern for everyone. According to Morrison, "Eighty-five per cent of countries have improved conditions for women over the past six years, according to the World Economic Forum, but in economic and political terms there is still a long way to go."

Morrison's article looks at a range of topics, including the best places for women to be a politician (Rwanda), be a mother (Norway), give birth (Greece), and earn money (Luxembourg), among other surprising results.

On the overall best place to be a woman (Iceland), Morrison writes, "Iceland has the greatest equality between men and women, taking into account politics, education, employment and health indicators. The UK comes in at 16th place, down one since 2010. The worst is Yemen, and the most dangerous is Afghanistan."

Sunday, March 4, 2012 in The Independent

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

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