Top 20 Women-Friendly Countries In The World, 2014

Out of the 142 countries, Iceland tops out as the #1 place for women, according to the World Economic Forum‘s global gender equality index, Iceland shows narrowing the gender gap isn’t rocket-science.

As one of the first countries to give women the right to vote in 1915,  Iceland, frequently referred to as “feminist’s paradise,” as well as the world leader in women’s rights, it is hands-down the most woman-friendly country in the world.

Nordic countries consistently rank at the top of the list. Finland (No. 2), orway (No. 3), Sweden (No. 4) and Denmark (No. 5). At No. 20, the United States continues to improve in the rankings–up from No. 23 in 2013 – but hasn’t yet climbed to a top-10 slot.

Readers: What can we learn from the Nordic countries?

At the bottom of the list, the worst countries for gender quality are Mali (No. 138), Syria (No. 139),     Chad (No. 140), Pakistan (No. 141) and Yemen (No. 142).

The Global Gender Gap Index 2014, listed the following countries as the 20 best places for women – the narrower the gender gap, the happier you’ll be. The highest possible score is 1 (equality) and the lowest possible score is 0 (inequality)

1. Iceland
Score: 0.8594

2. Finland
Score: 0.8453

3. Norway
Score: 0.8374

4. Sweden
Score: 0.8165

5. Denmark
Score: 0.8025

6. Nicaragua
Score: 0.7894

7. Rwanda
Score: 0.7854

8. Ireland
Score: 0.7850

9. Philippines
Score: 0.7814

10. Belgium
Score: 0.7809

11. Switzerland
Score: 0.7798

12. Germany
Score: 0.7780

13. New Zealand
Score: 0.7772

14. Netherlands
Score: 0.7730

15. Latvia
Score: 0.7691

16. France
Score: 0.7588

17. Burundi
Score: 0.7565

18. South Africa
Score: 0.7527

19. Canada
Score: 0.7464

20. United States
Score: 0.7463

Worst Countries For Women:

133. Morocco

134. Jordan

135. Lebanon

136. Côte d’Ivoire

137. Iran, Islamic Rep.

138. Mali

139. Syria

140. Chad

141. Pakistan

142. Yemen

To determine the best and worst countries for women’s equality, the group considered 14 variables in four categories: women’s access to basic and higher education; women’s health and survival by measures of life expectancy and sex ratio; equality of economic opportunity and participation; and political empowerment.