Laura Paddison - Why Iceland Is The Best Place In The World To Be A Woman
Iceland is often
celebrated for its geothermal pools, breathtaking glaciers and amazing views of
the northern lights. But it has another claim to fame: It is apparently the
best place in the world to be a woman.
For the last decade,
the nation of roughly 350,000 people has topped the World Economic Forum’s
annual gender
gap report, which ranks countries’ progress toward gender equality across
areas including economic participation, political representation, education and
health. For comparison, the United States came in 51st last year, sandwiched
between Mexico and Peru. Iceland also consistently performs well in The
Economist’s “glass ceiling index,” which rates the best countries for working
women. It placed first in the index in 2016 and third
in 2018 (the U.S. came in 19th).
The Nordic nation’s
progressive attitudes toward women have given it much to boast about. It was
the first country to democratically elect a female president, Vigdís
Finnbogadóttir, who came to power in 1980. The current prime minister, Katrín
Jakobsdóttir, who was elected in 2017, is the second woman in that position in
Iceland’s history. Iceland has also passed a raft of legislation aimed at
reducing pay inequality, ensuring women are better represented at the highest
levels in business and guaranteeing shared paid parental leave.
Yet while it forges
ahead of the rest of the world, some leaders in Iceland’s push for gender
equality point out that their country is still no paradise for women and argue
that all the accolades show how low the global bar is for women’s rights... read more:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/iceland-women-world-best-place_n_5c7d39ace4b0614614dcf2d4