The Top 10 Most Female-Friendly Countries in the World

Why must women go out and fight for rights and opportunities that are just handed to men? The freedoms that women are given depend on how female-friendly their country is. As times become more progressive, many countries seem to be narrowing the gender gap by reforming policies in order to create a society that is more inclusive of women. It is vital to the continuance of spreading feminism around the world. The global gender gap report measures gender equality using four main principles: economic participation, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment. Nordic countries seemed to have figured out that, in order to have a thriving and stable economy, women and men must have equal rights. In contrast, women in countries like Saudi Arabia are discriminated against, and have minimal basic rights, having just gained the right to drive. Even in female-friendly countries where women have made significant progress, there is still much work to be done in order to completely close the gender gap.

Iceland

Iceland was one of the first countries for women to exhibit equalized economic participation and opportunity, believing that it was inevitable that this would happen globally. Throughout history, women in Iceland were subjected to more “masculine” jobs by default. Since Iceland is an island, men would oftentimes set out to sail for work, leaving their wives at home to care for their land and finances. It was left up to women to ensure that the country continued to grow and develop. This empowered women to fight for equal pay and rights, as they were the ones who were responsible for maintaining the country’s stability. Considering this history, it is not surprising that Iceland was the first country to elect a female president, Vigdis Finnogadottir. Not only was Finnogadottir the first woman president elected nationally, but at the time, she was a divorcee and a single mother, which is frowned upon in most other countries in the world. Finnogadottir continued to set a precedent for both Iceland, and for women and girls around the world.

Norway

Norway first began to decrease the gender gap by actually focusing on how to allot men more time for household matters. The Norwegian Parliament, which is now over 40 percent female, was the first country to introduce “papa leave.” This gave fathers a four-week period to help out their wives who were caring for their newborns. A maternity leave law designed for males allowed new mothers to return to work quicker. Nowadays, Norway has taken a more standard, but still progressive, path by implementing an action plan to further women’s involvement, both politically and economically. The act has also outlawed any violence against women, and issued more affordable educational and health plans. Norwegian women are considered to be lucky, as Norway is continuing to make drastic changes to benefit their everyday lives.

Finland

Women in Finland have been lucky enough to never truly understand what it means to be disenfranchised and powerless. Before Finland was even declared their own country, women had a right to vote. Women campaigning for gender equality usually use a domino strategy. Once they have conquered one challenge, they move onto the next until they have removed all the obstacles in their way. After the Finn females were granted the right to vote, they quickly moved onto gaining a sizable percent of seats in Parliament. Since the country was founded under the premise of giving men and women the same rights and freedoms, the women of Finland never really had to fight for equality. When an inequity arises, women will raise their concerns, which are then dealt with in a timely fashion.

Rwanda

Though women hold leadership positions in many countries around the world, Rwanda is the only country where women hold a majority in Parliament. After a civil war broke out, leaving thousands of males dead, women comprised the majority of the population and were responsible for running the country. The women of Rwanda, at that time, were uneducated, and therefore faced significant difficulties trying to take on leadership roles. Both the men and women took that as a sign to begin educating and electing females into Parliament, making it one of the most female-friendly countries in the world. The people of Rwanda are credited with empowering strong women to lead their country. While Rwanda’s government is quite progressive and the leaders have made education available to all, younger girls still face verbal discrimination in their schools, and feel like they constantly need to prove that they are just as strong as men.

Sweden

Sweden was one of the first countries in the world to understand that, in order to narrow the gender gap, the government must install an individualized tax system. An individualized tax system targets each person and their specific needs, rather than the needs of the entire family. With this system in place, women will never be forced to rely on their husbands; but rather, will need to take on active roles in the workforce in order to pay off their taxes. Now, Sweden’s main initiative is to make maternity and paternity days equal so that women will no longer be at a disadvantage when looking for work.

Nicaragua

Up until 2006 Nicaragua was a dangerous country for women to live in. In that year, the government took action and began to make Nicaragua a safer place for women. They felt that, in order to make a change in society, they must begin by educating young girls in the hope that they will eventually become powerful women. This was, in fact, a successful plan. Currently in Nicaragua, 41 percent of lawyers and politicians are women. This percentage is constantly increasing as Nicaragua continues to follow the world movement of narrowing the gender gap.

Slovenia

The people of Slovenia are not only trying to reform their own country, but they are working on implementing laws globally to make the world a safer place for women. Slovenia’s primary concern at the UN conference was to abolish the discrimination that takes place against women in the workforce. They were successful at the conference by passing legislation that ensured women would not be penalized for taking time off from work after having a child. At a more recent conference, representatives from Slovenia brought up the issue of domestic violence and consequently adopted a law to protect all women and girls at home. Slovenia has made, and continues to make, drastic changes in the world to benefit women.

Ireland

The people of Ireland have just gone through a “silent revolution” when they voted to repeal the eighth amendment. Since 1961, it has been illegal for women to get an abortion in Ireland with the exception of those women who were experiencing at-risk pregnancies. However, several weeks ago, the majority of people voted to reform this law. The people of Ireland recognized that there is power in numbers, and organized many strikes to legalize abortions. Irish women still have a long way to go when it comes to making the country a better place for women, but this was a huge step in the right direction. The women of Ireland now feel hopeful that their country will continue to make society a more equal place for them to live.

New Zealand

In 1863, New Zealand was the first self-governing country to give women the right to vote. Since then, New Zealand has continued to treat women and men equally. Women in New Zealand tend to go through more years of schooling than men, resulting in a small gap in the labor market. Women fall short of men in the labor force by just five percent. New Zealand has always been one of the most female-friendly countries in the world, and women continue to live a good and safe life.

The Philippines

The Philippines got off to a late start when treating men and women as equals, but are making drastic changes to their society. Only a little bit ago, in 1937, were women given the right to vote. Since then, a law has been passed protecting women from domestic violence, and another law was passed increasing the number of days that working women get paid for maternity leave. The effects of these new laws have been quite successful. The amount of girls receiving an education has increased significantly, and continues to do so. Filipino women have fought a long and hard fight, but they are finally beginning to see progress.