Reports and Indices Current Affairs MCQs

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676 million women globally were exposed to conflict in the past year, marking a 74% rise since 2010. Three decades of progress on women’s rights and status have stagnated or declined, according to the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Index 2025-26. The WPS Index, by Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and Peace Research Institute Oslo, ranks 181 countries based on inclusion, justice, and security for women. India ranks 131st with a score of 0.607, showing steady but uneven progress. Top three countries are Denmark, Iceland, and Norway.

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The World Inequality Lab released the 3rd edition of the World Inequality Report (after 2018 and 2022). Globally, the top 1% control 37% of wealth and the top 10% hold 75%. In India, the top 1% own 40% of total wealth and the top 10% hold 65%. Globally, the top 10% earn 53% of income; in India, the top 1% earn 23% and the top 10% capture 58% of national income. Billionaire wealth has grown 8% annually since the 1990s—almost double the rate of the bottom 50%. The top 10% emit 77% of global carbon emissions, while the poorest 50% emit just 3%. The Global South transfers over 1% of world GDP to the Global North yearly through debt servicing and financial flows.

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United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) released the report Right to Education: Past, Present and Future reviewing progress since the 1960 Convention against Discrimination in Education. The report highlights major gains, including free basic education in 82% of countries and primary school completion rising to 88%. Higher education enrolment grew from 100 million in 2000 to 264 million today. Despite progress, 272 million children still drop out early and 762 million adults remain illiterate, mostly women. UNESCO warns that climate shocks, conflicts and artificial intelligence demand urgent updates to global education laws. It stresses lifelong learning as essential for workers and older adults.

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A report titled “India’s Employment Prospects: Pathways to Jobs” was released on 11 December 2025 by Manish Sabharwal, Vice Chairman of the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER). The report highlights that skilling and small enterprises are the most critical drivers of job creation in India, while stressing the need to overcome structural bottlenecks affecting workforce participation, job quality, and labour productivity. The recent increase in employment has been driven largely by self-employment, rather than expansion of wage employment, and that the transition towards a skilled workforce has been relatively slow.

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The 2025 Asia Power Index, published by the Lowy Institute, assesses Asian countries’ resources and influence, including nations as far north as Russia and as far into the Pacific as Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. The United States remains the leading power in Asia, with influence extending beyond any single administration. China is the second-most powerful, narrowing its gap with the US to the lowest since 2020, partly due to policies during the Donald Trump administration. India ranks third, surpassing Japan last year, with a comprehensive power score over 40 points, making it a “major power.” India’s economic, military, cultural, and geopolitical capabilities have grown modestly, though diplomatic and defence influence has not expanded equally.

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Indian athletes topped the global doping charts for the third consecutive year in 2024, recording 260 adverse analytical findings (AAFs), according to the latest World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) report. India’s positivity rate was 3.6%, the highest among countries conducting 5,000+ tests. The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) conducted 7,113 tests in 2024 (6,576 urine samples and 537 blood samples). Out of these, 253 urine samples and 7 blood samples tested positive for prohibited substances. NADA attributed India’s high ranking partly to intensified testing and stronger detection mechanisms, not necessarily a surge in doping prevalence.

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NITI Aayog released a major policy report titled ‘Internationalisation of Higher Education in India: Prospects, Potential, and Policy Recommendations’ in New Delhi. The report is the result of a collaborative effort between NITI Aayog and an IIT Madras–led consortium and is considered a pioneering publication in the Global South. The document emphasises the concept of “internationalisation at home” as envisaged in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and analyses internationalisation at global, national, and institutional levels. It examines academic mobility trends of the last 20 years, and explores opportunities for student/faculty mobility, international research partnerships, and establishment of overseas campuses by Indian institutions and foreign universities in India.

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The Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India 2025 report was released by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It is a regular publication analysing regional economic growth and development in Asia, with focus on Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries. This edition includes a thematic chapter on enhancing Disaster Risk Financing (DRF) in Emerging Asia. The report finds that India, China, and ASEAN-11 face rising frequency and intensity of natural disasters, averaging 100 disasters annually, affecting about 80 million people.

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NITI Aayog released the report “Achieving Efficiencies in MSME Sector through Convergence of Schemes” to strengthen government support for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). It provides a roadmap to improve MSME outcomes by streamlining scheme implementation, enhancing inter-ministerial coordination, and boosting financial, skill, marketing, and innovation support. The report evaluates existing central and state MSME schemes, examines convergence levels, and identifies best practices from India and abroad.

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India is ranked 16th out of 154 countries in the Responsible Nations Index (RNI) 2026, a global framework measuring how responsibly nations use power. Singapore tops the index, followed by Switzerland and Denmark. The Responsible Nations Index (RNI), launched by the World Intellectual Foundation, shifts focus from economic or military power to ethical, sustainable, and responsible governance. The index evaluates nations on three pillars: internal responsibility (citizens’ well-being), environmental responsibility, and external responsibility (global conduct).