The U.S. ranked 43rd out of 146 countries, compared with 27th in 2022.
This is partly due to a change in how the WEF established its ranking, giving more weight to countries where women hold a significant number of ministerial positions or are heads of state, says Saadia Zahidi, managing director at WEF.
In the U.S., this would include the number of women serving in the president’s Cabinet. There are currently 12 women in President Joe Biden’s Cabinet.
Overall, American women remain “woefully behind” their European counterparts when it comes to political participation, says Noreen Farrell, executive director of the nonprofit Equal Rights Advocates, pointing out that less than 30% of congressional seats are held by women.
There are a number of reasons why Europe has been more successful in closing the gender gap than the U.S., says Zahidi. One reason is that European countries have invested more in care infrastructure, offering affordable child care, paid parental leave and universal health care.
“These policies make it easier for women to participate in the workforce and relieve financial pressure on families,” Zahidi explains.
While access to reproductive care wasn’t a factor the WEF considered in its ranking, Zahidi acknowledges that the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June 2022 could hurt women’s economic participation and life expectancy in the U.S., causing the country to fall further in the ranking.
“Gender parity is not an issue you can catch up on year to year,” adds Farrell. “It’s going to take a much longer time for women in the U.S. to overcome these very entrenched barriers to their progress.”
