• Namibia is Africa’s best performer on gender equality, ranked 8th globally
• Cape Verde and South Africa follow in the top three on the continent
• Global gender gap closes slightly, but full equality may take 123 more years

Namibia has been named the most gender-equal country in Africa in 2025, according to the Global Gender Gap Report published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) on June 11. The country ranks 8th globally, making it the only African nation in the worldwide top 10.

Cape Verde and South Africa follow closely, ranked 30th and 33rd globally. These countries top the list among 41 African nations analyzed in the report, which has tracked gender gaps since 2006. The report evaluates 148 countries representing more than two-thirds of the global population.

The WEF uses a scoring system from 0 to 1, where 1 means full gender parity. A score of 0.811 places Namibia at the top of Africa’s rankings. Each country’s score is based on around 15 indicators grouped into four key areas: economic participation, education level, health and survival, and political empowerment.

The indicators include labor force participation, equal pay for similar work, literacy rates, life expectancy, and the share of women in parliament and ministerial roles. For example, if women hold 20% of ministerial positions, the score for that criterion is 0.25 (20 women for every 80 men).

The overall gender gap is also expressed as a percentage between 0% and 100%, showing how much of the gap has been closed. The countries that came after the top 3 include Rwanda, Liberia, Burundi, Eswatini, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Tanzania. Other countries in the top 20 include Madagascar, Botswana, and Ethiopia.

Some countries made significant progress since the 2024 edition. Benin moved up 21 spots, Zambia climbed 13 places, Cape Verde improved by 11, and Madagascar rose by 8.

However, several countries saw setbacks. Togo fell 44 places, Sierra Leone dropped 32, Mozambique lost 26 spots, and Kenya slipped by 23.

On the global stage, Iceland remains the most gender-equal country for the 16th straight year, scoring 0.926. It is still the only country worldwide to surpass 90% parity. Finland, Norway, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand round out the top five.

Despite small improvements, the worldwide gender gap now stands at 68.8%. If progress continues at the current rate, the world will not reach full gender equality for another 123 years.

Ranking
  Namibia (8th)

  Cape Verde (30th)

  South Africa (33rd)

  Rwanda (39th)

  Liberia (40th)

  Burundi (44th)

  Eswatini (46th)

  Zimbabwe (49th)

  Mozambique (53rd)

  Tanzania (55th)

  Madagascar (58th)

  Botswana (60th)

  Ethiopia (75th)

  Zambia (79th)

  Uganda (80th)

  Ghana (88th)

  Gabon (91st)

  Cameroon (93rd)

  Kenya (98th)

  Lesotho (99th)

  Mauritius (111th)

  Sierra Leone (112th)

  Benin (113th)

  Gambia (114th)

  Comoros (115th)

  Senegal (116th)

  Angola (117th)

  Burkina Faso (120th)

  Togo (121st)

  Tunisia (123rd)

  Nigeria (124th)

  Côte d’Ivoire (127th)

  Morocco (137th)

  Egypt (139th)

  Mali (140th)

  Algeria (141st)

  Niger (142nd)

  Democratic Republic of the Congo (143rd)

  Guinea (144th)

  Chad (146th)

  Sudan (147th)