According to the 2015 Global Gender Gap report of World Economic Forum published on November 19, Rwanda is the only African country in the top 10 of most advanced countries worldwide in terms of Gender equality. Out of the 145 countries listed in the ranking, Rwanda came 6th. The report is based on features such as: health, politics, and economy (wages, contribution to labor market, leading positions). Rwanda hence comes ahead of many developed countries such as France, Germany and the United States.  

In the African countries best ranked in the report, Namibia is the second (16th in the world) coming ahead of South Africa, Burundi, Mozambique, Kenya, Tanzania, Cape Verde, and Botswana. Zimbabwe closes the Africa’s top 10 for this ranking. (See full ranking of African countries below).

Worldwide, Nordic countries are the best in terms of gender equality. Iceland, Norway, Finland, Sweden hold the four first positions of the ranking. They are followed by Ireland, fifth position. Rwanda (6th), Philippines (7th) and New-Zealand (10th) are the only non-European countries in the Top 10.

Another fact resulting from the 2015 Global gender Report is that the gap between genders closed up 4% since 2006 in all surveyed areas (health, education, economy and politics). However, with the current pace, there is still 118 years left till equality is a reality.

In the economy category, the gap reduced only 3%, since wages equality and labor market equality have not moved since 2009/2010. Women presently earn as much as men earned back in 2006, when was published the first gender equality report from World Economic Forum.

In the education sector, equality is almost achieved as the gap between men and women has reduced in the last ten years. This improvement is however marked by disparities: in about a fourth of the surveyed countries (22%), the gap widened.

It is in health that equality is the closest to real. Out of the 109 countries studied over the past 10 years, 103 mitigated gender disparities, but six have degraded opportunities for women since then: Sri Lanka, Mali, Croatia, Slovakia, Jordan, and Iran.

African countries in the gap gender report:

1-Rwanda (6th in the world)

2-Namibia (16th)

3-South Africa (17h)

4-Burundi (23rd)

5-Mozambique (27th)

6-Kenya (48th)

7-Tanzania (49th)  

8-Cape Verde (50th)

9-Botswana (55th)  

10-Zimbabwe (57th)

11-Uganda (58th)

12-Lesotho (61st)

13-Ghana (63rd)

14-Malawi (68th)  

15-Senegal (72nd)

16-Madagascar (74th)

17-Cameroon (90th)

18-Gambia (98th)

19-Swaziland (102nd)

20-Liberia (112th)

21-Burkina Faso (114th)

22-Zambia (116th)

23-Mauritius (120th)

24-Ethiopia (124th)

25-Nigeria (125th)

26-Angola (126th)

27-Tunisia (127th)

28-Algeria (128th)

29-Benin (129th)

30-Guinea (131st)

31-Mauritania (132nd)

32-Côte d’Ivoire (133rd)

33-Egypt (136th)

34-Mali (137th)

35-Morocco (139th)

36-Chad (142nd)