Opinion | Young women’s leadership in Asia is improving, but much work is left to do

There is reason to celebrate as over 70 per cent of Asia-Pacific countries showed improvement in opportunities for girls and young women to lead

Despite this progress, girls and women continue to be undervalued and underestimated throughout the region, even in the most developed countries

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Afghan women hold their educational documents during a protest as they demand the Taliban government provide them with job opportunities in Kabul, Afghanistan, on October 31. The Taliban have banned women from many government jobs and forbidden secondary school education for girls. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 8:15am, 10 Nov 2022

Throughout the Asia-Pacific region, there is an increasing consensus and appreciation about the value of fostering leadership among girls. As if there was ever any doubt, it is now obvious that no country can get ahead if it continues to leave half its population behind.

Our annual Asia-Pacific Girls Report has been charting this shift for several years through our Girls’ Leadership Indexes (GLIs), measuring the rights and opportunities adolescent girls and young women have to lead in their lives in the Asia-Pacific region.

There is cause for some celebration this year. For the first time since the GLIs began, more than 70 per cent of countries in the region have shown some form of improvement in the last year.

At the same time, these gains are fragile. As the skies of the global economy darken, there are fears that progress could be reversed. If that occurs, it would represent a tremendous missed opportunity.

The Asia-Pacific region is home to 60 per cent of the world’s youth population, about 750 million people aged 15 to 24 years. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) recognise that gender equality is integral to our collective global progress and that meaningful participation of girls and women in society is a precondition for global progress.

Despite meaningful shifts, girls and women continue to be undervalued and underestimated throughout the region. Even in the most developed countries, they regularly encounter gender-related barriers and inequalities that keep them from realising their full potential. These attitudes and practices continue to limit their abilities to enact leadership, define goals and act upon them.

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