Women-centric policies need to deliver progress that’s tangible and enduring

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. As International Women’s Day 2025 approaches, the theme—“For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality.

Empowerment"—reminds us that progress cannot be piecemeal. A few years ago, during a field visit, I met two women whose stories stayed with me. Lakshmi, an entrepreneur, had the skill and ambition to expand her small lacquer bangle business, a craft passed down by her father.

But every bank she approached demanded collateral she didn’t have. In another town, I met Bushra, a promising young engineer with a job offer that could change her life—but she hesitated to accept it. The long commute through unsafe streets and the unease in her family led to the unspoken question: Was the opportunity worth the risk? Both women faced barriers that had nothing to do with their talent—and everything to do with the system around them.

Where women stand: According to the World Bank , women earn 77 cents for every dollar a man makes, globally. Gendered earning gaps exist across regions, corporate hierarchies and industries, including those that one would think women dominate. For instance, in the US, men in teaching and nursing jobs often receive higher wages, despite the workforce being predominantly female.

At the highest levels of corporate power, women remain the exception, not the norm; they hold just over 10% of the CEO roles in Fortune 500 companies. In India, the participation of women in the country’s workforce has long been one of the world’s lowest. Although the government’s Periodic Labour Force Survey shows that it rose from 23.3% in 2017-18 to 41.7% in 2023-24, it remains below the global level.