The Global Gender Gap Index presented in this report seeks to measure one important aspect of gender equality: the relative gaps between women and men across four key areas: health, education, economy and politics. According to the report, the Middle East and North Africa have both crossed a threshold in 2017 of having a remaining gender gap of just under 40 per cent, while Western Europe has a remaining gender gap of 25 per cent.

The report also concludes that on current trends, the overall global gender gap can be closed in exactly 100 years across the 106 countries it has covered since its inception, compared to 83 years last year. The most challenging gender gaps remain in the economic and health spheres.

The report equally estimates that the continued widening of the economic gender gap, will now not be stopped for another 217 years. However, the education–specific gender gap could be reduced to parity within the next 13 years. The political dimension currently holds the widest gender gap and is also the one exhibiting the most progress, despite a slowdown in progress this year. It could be closed within 99 years. The health gender gap is larger than it stood in 2006.