It will be quite difficult to cite a single global report relating to the pressing socio-economic and democratic issues that came recently where India’s position hasn’t been poor. World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report 2021 that arrived Wednesday has been a continuity of this ‘run’. Going 28 steps down, India’s current position among 156 countries is 140^th, only ahead of Pakistan and Afghanistan! While for the country as a whole it’s a matter of shame, for the political dispensation cutting across party lines who often vocally champions the cause of women empowerment and equality, the report is a message that the gap between ‘promises’ they make and on-ground reality is appalling. However, it’s expected that since the report has attributed the over global changes in gender inequality to corona pandemic largely, a ready-made narrative in this line will arrive shortly. Admitting nevertheless that the corona effect is true, the question that remains is – when was India’s image as a true pursuer of minimising this gap bright? It was never so and the pandemic has only made things worse.

Like the earlier editions of Global Gender Gap Index, this year also four key dimensions: Economic Participation and Opportunity, Educational Attainment, Health and Survival and Political Empowerment were taken into account. In the 2020 report India ranked 112^th and as a result of 4.2 more percentage point gender gap on an overall basis in this edition, the pathetic 28-step slide has occurred. The report has noted that most of the decline has occurred on the political empowerment sub-index, where India has been demoted by 13.5 percentage points. There is also a marked decline in economic participation and opportunity sub-index, with gender gap widening more by 3% than the preceding year. Real economic empowerment of the country’s women is also very poor given the finding that their income is only one-fifth of men’s which has earned India a spot among the global bottom 10 on this indicator. In relation to health and survival sub-index statistics, there is a persistent discrimination against women along with wide sex ratio at birth gaps due to high incidence of gender based sex-selective practices and more than one in four women in the country has unmistakably faced violence in her lifetime. Bangladesh has been the best performer in South Asia and has succeeded in closing 71.9% of its gender gap and even Nepal is way ahead of India with 106^th position.

India has closed only 62.5 % of its gender gap till date and all stakeholders including the policy makers and their political bosses are fully knowledgeable about the contributing factors. What is most unfortunate is that a credible attempt for a reversal is nowhere in sight. 

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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