SDG Gender Index
The SDG Gender Index, developed by Equal Measures 2030, is a tool for measuring progress towards gender equality worldwide. The index is a joint initiative of regional and global organizations, including the African Women’s Development and Communication Network, the Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the International Women’s Health Coalition. The index assesses 129 countries, which represent 95% of the world’s girls and women, on their progress towards achieving gender equality across 14 out of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Findings of the Index
The findings of the index reveal that the world is far from achieving gender equality, with 1.4 billion girls and women living in countries that receive a very poor grade in the index. The global average score is 65.7 out of 100. Approximately 2.8 billion girls and women live in countries that receive either a very poor (59 and below) or poor score (60-69) on gender equality. Only 8% of the world’s population of girls and women live in countries that received a good gender equality score (80-89). No country achieved an excellent overall score of 90 or above.
How Did India Perform?
India scored well in indicators such as health (79.9), hunger and nutrition (76.2), and energy (71.8). However, India’s lowest scores were on indicators related to partnerships (18.3, in the bottom 10 countries worldwide), industry, infrastructure and innovation (38.1), and climate (43.4). India also scored low on indicators related to political representation, such as the proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (score 23.6; women made up 11.8% of Parliament in 2018) and seats held by women in the Supreme Court (4% and score 18.2).
India’s score on gender-based violence indicators was also low, including the proportion of women aged 20-24 years who were married or in a union before age 18 (Score: 27.3%), women who agreed that a husband/partner is justified in beating his wife/partner under certain circumstances (Score: 47.0%), and women aged 15+ who reported that they feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where she lives (score: 69.1%).
How Does the Index Calculate?
The index is based on 14 out of 17 SDGs that cover aspects such as poverty, health, education, literacy, political representation, and equality at the workplace. A score of 100 reflects the achievement of gender equality in relation to the targets set for each indicator, and a score of 50 signifies that a country is about halfway to meeting the goal.
