Published on: 2026-08-04
Source: United Nations – United Nations –
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3 August 2026 Women
Women make up half of the world’s population, yet they still do not have equal opportunities in the workforce. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), in 2025 only 48 percent of women were represented in the formal labor market compared to 73 percent of men. On average, women earn 23 percent less and perform more than three-quarters of all unpaid caregiving work.
The gap is even more noticeable at the leadership levels. According to the UN Development Programme, women hold about 38 percent of managerial positions and just over 31 percent of executive posts worldwide. Their representation remains particularly low in sectors that determine the future of economic growth, innovation, and investment.
“Barriers affect women differently. Privileges can ease them, while discrimination can intensify them. For some women, the ladder to leadership is difficult. For others, it is broken. And for many, it does not exist at all,” stated Peggy Hicks, Director of the Thematic Cooperation, Special Procedures, and Right to Development Division at the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Despite the progress made, women still face unequal access to decent work, unpaid caregiving responsibilities, stereotypes, violence, and harassment in the workplace. The situation is further compounded by discrimination based on race, ethnicity, disability, age, socio-economic, or migration status.
The Path of Women to Leadership Positions in Morocco
The Secretary-General for Vocational Training at the Ministry of Employment of Morocco, Wafa Asri, has been engaged for over 30 years in vocational training, employment issues, and human capital development.
According to her, the main challenge was not the workload, but the need to prove that women have the same right to hold leadership positions as men do – especially to colleagues with traditional views on gender roles.
“Leadership cannot simply be proclaimed. It is formed day by day through competence, consistency, and personal example,” Asri said.
She launched the Direction Femmes program, which helps women develop leadership skills and prepare for occupying high positions. Thanks to this and other initiatives, the representation of women among leaders in the ministry has grown from less than 20 percent to about 35 percent.
Asri emphasized that mentoring programs alone are not enough. Laws ensuring gender equality, flexible working conditions, accessible childcare services, combating stereotypes, and examples of women leaders are necessary.
She also noted significant progress in the field of education. When Asri was studying engineering, girls made up less than 15 percent of the students in her course, but today their share exceeds half. More and more women in Morocco are choosing professions in traditionally male-dominated sectors such as mining, automotive engineering, and aviation.
Protection of the rights of domestic workers in Tanzania
Thousands of women and girls in Tanzania perform domestic work and care for others every day. Most of them are employed in the informal sector, earn low wages, work overtime, and have virtually no social protection. They also find it difficult to report violations and seek justice.
However, significant progress is being observed in this matter. The Tanzanian government is reviewing minimum wage standards, labor legislation, and national policy to strengthen the protection of domestic workers. The United Nations Human Rights Office, together with the ILO and the Tanzania Labour College, is assisting them in defending their rights and participating in decision-making.
“Previously, most of them did not want to be called domestic workers. They considered it shameful. But thanks to continuous educational work, today they can say without fear: ‘I am a domestic worker,'” said Asteria Matias, a representative of the Tanzanian union CHODAWU.
Since 2011, the trade union, the UN, and other partners have been developing a peer learning program. Initially, 50 domestic workers participated in it, and now their number exceeds 200. Another 1,281 women in eight regions of the country have received vocational training certificates.
According to Mathias, the main unresolved issue is that society still does not always recognize domestic work as full-fledged employment, nor those engaged in this field as workers possessing the corresponding rights.
Why women should participate in decision-making
Acting Executive Director of the organization Global Women Leaders Voices, Kristina Gallah, began her journalism career in Barcelona in the early 1980s. Even then, she noticed that the main reporting work was done by women, while leadership and managerial positions were almost entirely held by men.
Later, while working in European Union structures, Gallah participated in a security mission at the border crossing between Israel, Gaza, and Egypt. Among the group of organizers, there was not a single woman, so there were no women among the police officers deployed to the border either.
As a result, women crossing the border were supposed to be inspected by men, which was unacceptable. The organizers had to urgently send female police officers to the site.
“This is a concrete example of why women need to be involved in decision-making at all levels – both at the planning stage and in the implementation of decisions,” Gallah said.
Subsequently, she participated in the development of Spain’s first feminist foreign policy, and at the UN, she led the preparation of the first strategy to ensure gender equality in the Department of Public Information.
Gallagher called on women aspiring to build careers in diplomacy and public service to create networks of mutual support, seek mentors, and openly oppose discrimination.
“We are going through a difficult period for gender equality. There is a rollback in many areas. We will only be able to resist it and continue moving forward by supporting each other and not being afraid to talk about problems,” she emphasized.
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