PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia Gender Gap Index (MGGI) scored 0.707 or 70.7 percent in 2021 compared to 0.714 or 71.4 percent in 2020 with women’s achievement has surpassed men in the educational attainment sub-index with a score of 1.060, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) in conjunction with the World Population Day.
MGGI identifies the gap between women and men across four sub-indices encompassing economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival and political empowerment.
A score with a value of 1.0 or 100 percent indicates the equality of women and men has been achieved.
DOSM in a statement today said girls are consistently enrolling at higher rates than boys in both primary and secondary school.
“In 2022, the gross enrolment rate for females in primary and secondary levels were 98.4 percent and 94.5 percent respectively. At the tertiary level, women at 47.5 percent outnumbered men at 33.8 percent. This achievement supports the country’s commitment to providing access to high-quality education,” it said.
On economic participation and opportunity with a score of 0.709, DOSM said women’s labour force participation rate in Malaysia has risen significantly from 44.5 percent in 1982 to 55.5 percent in 2021.
According to World Bank Indicator, the world’s labour force participation rate of women stood at 52.5 percent in 2021.
On political empowerment, DOSM said it recorded 10 percent or a score of 0.100 which shows there was potential for increased representation and empowerment of women in the political sphere.
“Despite the significance of Malaysian women’s participation in the economy and in education, there is an inspiring opportunity for further progress in leadership positions in the country’s political system, as only 17.9 percent of women currently hold ministerial positions,” it said. - Bernama
