South Africa

Education is critical to women’s opportunities, freedom from violence, and health. Years of schooling is a more precise measure than, for example, secondary school completion. Our Index captures the average number of years of education of women ages 25 and older.

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics

Employment reflects women’s economic opportunities, which are central to realizing women’s capabilities and freedoms. It is preferred to labor force participation because it excludes unemployment. Our Index captures the percentage of women ages 25 to 64 who are employed in the formal or informal sector.

Source: ILOSTAT database

Financial inclusion allows individuals to smooth consumption, manage risk, attain financial autonomy, invest in education and health, and independently start and expand a business. Our Index measures the percentage of women ages 15 and older who report having an individual or joint account at a bank or other financial institution or who report using a mobile money service in the past year.

Source: World Bank Global Findex Database

Cellphone use is increasingly recognized as core to people’s opportunities to be informed about and participate in the economy, society, and politics. Our Index captures the percentage of women ages 15 years and older who report having a mobile phone that they use to make and receive personal calls.

Source: Gallup World Poll 2018

This is the most widely available measure of women’s political participation. Our Index captures the percentage of seats held by women in lower and upper houses of national parliament.

Source: Inter-Parliamentary Union

Discriminatory laws have adverse repercussions, making it harder for women to own property, open bank accounts, start a business, or take a job and enter professions restricted to men. Our Index captures the aggregate score for laws and regulations that limit women’s ability to participate in society and the economy or that differentiate between men and women. Possible scores range from 0-100, with 100 indicating a fully equal legal code.

Source: World Bank, Women Business, and the Law

While the absence of legal discrimination indicator measures women’s rights in the law, the access to justice indicator captures women’s ability to exercise these rights in practice. On a scale of zero to four, countries are scored on the extent to which women are able to bring cases to court, seek fair trials, and obtain legal redress when their rights are violated.

Source: V-Dem (Varieties of Democracy)

Maternal mortality is a key indicator of women’s access to healthcare and the responsiveness of the healthcare system to their needs. Our Index captures the number of pregnancy-related maternal deaths per 100,000 live births.

Source: United Nations Department of Social and Economic Affairs

Son bias reflects a preference for boys, which indicates serious discrimination against girls and women. Our Index captures the extent to which the sex ratio at birth (number of male births per 100 female births) exceeds the natural demographic rate of 1.05.

Source: United Nations Department of Social and Economic Affairs

Our Index captures the percentage of women who experienced physical or sexual violence committed by an intimate partner in the 12 months prior to data collection. More than one in eight women globally have experienced recent IPV, with rates ranging from 2 percent in Switzerland and Singapore to 45 percent in Iraq.

Source: UN Women Global Database on Violence against Women

Security and safety in the community affect women’s mobility and opportunities outside the home. Perceptions of safety are heavily influenced by larger trends of conflict and violence, which threaten women’s immediate and long-term well-being. Our Index captures the percentage of women ages 15 years and older who report that they “feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where you live.”

Source: Gallup World Poll

Political violence undermines women’s ability to participate in civic spaces and decision-making processes, hindering global democratic and peace processes. The Index measures the number of political violence events targeting women per 100,000 women.

Source: The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data project

Armed conflict disproportionately affects women through multiple channels, including higher risks of gender-based violence, livelihood disruptions, worsening education systems, and diminishing healthcare access. Our Index measures the percentage of women who live within 50 kilometers of conflict.

Source: Peace Research Institute Oslo