- June 13, 2025
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- BELONGING JAPAN
Gender equality Japan remains a critical topic as the country strives to close gaps between men and women in various areas such as work, education, and politics. Despite some progress, Japan still faces challenges in achieving full gender parity compared to other developed nations. This article explores recent findings from the World Economic Forum, key vocabulary to understand discussions around gender equality, and a breakdown of Japan’s performance in different areas related to gender equality.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Key Findings of the WEF
On June 12, 2025, the World Economic Forum (WEF) released the Global Gender Gap Report 2025, which evaluates gender disparities in countries around the world. In this year’s report, gender equality Japan continues to be a pressing issue, with Japan ranked 118th out of 148 countries—unchanged from its 2024 position.
The Global Gender Gap Index annually benchmarks the status and progress of gender parity across four key dimensions: Economic Participation and Opportunity, Educational Attainment, Health and Survival, and Political Empowerment.
When compared with the other G7 nations, Japan ranked the lowest. The rankings of G7 countries were as follows: United Kingdom (4th), Germany (9th), Canada (32nd), France (35th), United States (42nd), Italy (85th), and Japan (118th).
Top 10 countries
The top 10 countries with the smallest gender gaps in 2025 were: (The text in parentheses shows the previous year’s ranking and the change in the index compared to the previous year. )
Iceland – 0.926 (Rank 1, -0.010)
Finland – 0.879 (Rank 2, +0.004)
Norway – 0.863 (Rank 3, -0.012)
United Kingdom – 0.838 (Rank 14, +0.049)
New Zealand – 0.827 (Rank 4, -0.008)
Sweden – 0.817 (Rank 5, +0.001)
Moldova – 0.813 (Rank 13, +0.023)
Namibia – 0.811 (Rank 8, +0.006)
Germany – 0.803 (Rank 7, -0.006)
Ireland – 0.801 (Rank 9, -0.001)
This international context underscores the urgent need to improve gender equality Japan, particularly in relation to its peer nations.
Source: World Economic Forum
Chapter 2: Gender Equality Japan – Breakdown by Area
The Global Gender Gap Report 2025 provides a detailed look at how Japan is performing in four key areas of gender equality. Here’s a summary of the results:
1. Economic Participation and Opportunity
Japan made the most progress in this category. The score rose from 56.8% in 2024 to 61.3% in 2025.
This improvement was driven by:
A slight increase in women participating in the labor force (from 54.8% to 55.6%)
More women working as senior officials, managers, and legislators (from 14.6% to 16.1%)
A small rise in gender parity in estimated earned income (from 58.3% to 59.2%)
2. Educational Attainment
This area remained mostly unchanged.
More women are enrolling in tertiary (higher) education, but the gap between men and women has not closed yet.
3. Health and Survival
There were no major changes here.
Gender parity in health remains stable, with only slight updates in indicator values.
4. Political Empowerment
Japan’s performance declined sharply in this area.
The score dropped from 11.8% in 2024 to 8.5% in 2025
This is mainly because the share of women in ministerial positions fell from 25% to just 10%
Japan lost the gains it made in 2024 and returned to previous low levels in political gender parity
These results highlight that while there is progress in some areas, gender equality Japan still faces serious challenges—especially in political representation.
Chapter 3: Key Vocabulary Around Gender Equality Japan
Below is a list of common Japanese words related to gender equality Japan, along with their romaji and English meanings. These terms often appear in news articles, government reports, and everyday conversations.
| Japanese | Romaji | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|
|
男女平等 |
danjo byōdō |
Gender equality |
|
男女差別 |
danjo sabetsu |
Gender discrimination |
|
女性の権利 |
josei no kenri |
Women’s rights |
|
性別 |
seibetsu |
Sex / Gender |
|
共働き |
tomobataraki |
Dual-income household |
We hope this overview of the latest data from the Global Gender Gap Report and key vocabulary related to gender equality Japan helps deepen your understanding of current gender issues in the country. Whether you’re working, raising a family, or simply interested in social topics, knowing these terms and trends can support your life in Japan.
If you have any thoughts about this topic or questions about gender equality Japan, please feel free to leave us a comment—we’d love to hear from you!
