WASHINGTON — True equality at work remains out of reach for women everywhere in the world, and only a small share live in countries where job opportunities and protections come close to being fair, the World Bank said in a sobering new report, according to Hurriyet Daily News.
The study, part of the bank’s long running Women, Business and the Law series, found that even when governments pass laws promising equal treatment, those rules are fully enforced only about half the time. As a result, legal rights often exist on paper but not in daily life.
“Even in economies that have modernized their laws, women still face constraints that shape the work they can do, the businesses they can start, and the safety they need to pursue opportunities,” said Indermit Gill, the institution’s chief economist.
Unlike many earlier assessments, the report looked beyond legislation. It examined whether countries provide public services such as childcare, workplace protections, and enforcement systems that allow women to benefit from equality laws in practice. The conclusion was stark: structural barriers remain deeply rooted across regions and income levels.
The findings carry urgency. Over the next decade, about 1.2 billion young people are expected to enter the global workforce, roughly half of them women. Without stronger reforms, the bank warned, many will encounter the same limits that have long shaped women’s economic lives.
The report argues that closing gender gaps in employment is not only a matter of justice but also of shared prosperity. When women can work, earn, and lead businesses on equal terms, economies grow stronger and families gain stability.
Among advanced economies, Spain ranked closest to full workplace equality. By contrast, many countries in the Middle East and parts of the Pacific region lag far behind, reflecting persistent legal and cultural constraints.
Some of the fastest progress, however, has emerged in lower-income and developing nations such as Egypt, Madagascar, and Somalia. These countries have recently moved to ease restrictions on women entering certain professions, introduce equal-pay standards, and expand parental-leave rights.
Between 2023 and 2025, nearly 70 countries adopted about 100 reforms aimed at improving women’s access to jobs and entrepreneurship. Yet the report’s central message endures; despite gains, true workplace equality remains a goal no nation has fully achieved.
