# India remains 131st in global gender gap index

2026-09-16T22:52:15+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 2 independent outlets

India has retained its 131st rank on the Global Gender Gap Index 2026 released by the World Economic Forum on September 16. Only 14 countries ranked below India among the 145 nations surveyed. Iceland, Finland and Norway hold the top three spots. Chad is the lowest-ranked country, with Iran and Pakistan in the bottom three. The WEF said full global gender parity is still 120 years away, with 69.2% of the gap now closed. India's gender parity stands at 64.5%, below the global average. The country's score improved slightly over the last year, but its ranking was unchanged. India has gained 4.3 percentage points since 2006, mainly due to gains in educational attainment.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

Both The Hindu and Assam Tribune report the same WEF data, with neutral-report framing. The Hindu leads with the static rank and the 120-year parity projection, while Assam Tribune front-loads the rank and the economic parity lag. Neither outlet adds government or opposition comment. The key takeaway: India's political empowerment subindex ranks 67th globally, the best among the four dimensions, but its economic participation score at 41.2% is 3.5 points below its 2013 peak. Labour-force parity has barely moved in two decades. The next benchmark will be the WEF's 2027 report in a year.

## Coverage

- thehindu.com (neutral report) <https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/indias-rank-on-global-gender-gap-index-unchanged-at-131-iceland-retains-top-spot/article71471699.ece>
  Leads with rank unchanged and 120-year parity projection, no editorialising
- assamtribune.com (neutral report) <https://assamtribune.com/national/india-remains-131st-in-global-gender-gap-index-as-economic-parity-lags-1617573>
  Leads with rank and economic parity lag, uses PTI wire style
- thehindu.com (neutral report) <https://www.thehindu.com/videos/india-stuck-at-131-on-the-global-gender-gap-index/article71477961.ece>
  Leads with rank unchanged and 120-year parity projection, no editorialising

Tags: Global Gender Gap Index, India, Saadia Zahidi, World Economic Forum
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