'Gender gap' is biggest in Egypt

BBC News:

Women in Egypt are the furthest behind men in terms of economic equality, while no country has closed the "gender gap" entirely, a new survey has found.

Sweden has the smallest difference between the sexes, followed by Norway, Iceland, Denmark and Finland, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Here are some other countries where women badly trail behind men:

Several of the most populous nations in the world languish at the lower end of the table. India, Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt are all in the bottom 10.

"Their rankings reflect large disparities between men and women of all five areas of the index," the WEF said in its report, with the only bright spot being India's high score for political empowerment of women.

Latin America has its share of poor performers, with Venezuela, Brazil and Mexico all in the worst 10.

Here are the worst and best performers in Europe:

In Europe, non-EU Switzerland scored relatively badly at number 34. It got a good rating on health and political empowerment, but fared less well on equal pay and women in the workforce.

Italy and Greece have the worst rankings in the EU, at 45 and 50 respectively, mainly because of women's lack of decision-making power and poor career prospects.

In Asia, China was the highest-rated country at number 33 - scoring well on economic participation, but badly on education and political empowerment. Japan is a few places behind at 38.

Topping the WEF tables were Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Denmark and Finland, which provide a "workable model" for the rest of the world, the WEF said.

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