Denmark is the best country in the world to be a woman, according to the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Index 2023, which was presented in October 2023 at the Norwegian Mission to the United Nations in New York.
The country scores three times higher than Afghanistan, which ranks lowest on the index.
The WPS Index is based on recognized data sources to measure women's inclusion, justice and security in 177 countries.
Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, Finland and Luxembourg topped the list of top countries for women. Afghanistan, Yemen and the Central African Republic rank among the lowest.
"Countries where women are doing well are more prosperous, peaceful, democratic and better prepared to respond to the impacts of climate change," said Elena Ortiz (SFS'21), a Georgetown student who is lead author of the report. . "When women do well, everyone in society does well, and our index shows that."
The 2023 index found that the well-being of women is directly linked to the well-being of a country.
Countries where women thrive scored higher in terms of peace, democracy and prosperity, according to correlations between the WPS Index and other global indices. In fact, these impacts are more strongly related to the status of women than to GDP.
Notably, the 20 lowest-ranking countries in this year's index experienced armed conflict between 2021 and 2022. In most of these countries – including Afghanistan, Yemen, the Central African Republic and South Sudan – more than half of women live in conflict.
"The world is engulfed in an increasing number of conflicts and there is an increase in authoritarianism and pushback against women's progress," said Ambassador Melanne Verveer, executive director of GWIPS. "The index reminds us that there is a direct correlation between the well-being of women and the well-being of nations. Investments in advancing gender equality are also investments in peace, security and prosperity.”
