Women Political Leaders 2025

The Women Political Leaders 2025 publication was released by the Un Women.

Global Decline in Women’s Political Leadership

• The report notes a global rollback in women’s participation in executive political roles.
• As of January 1, 2025:
  • Only 22.9% of heads of Cabinet ministries were women — a decline from 23.3% in 2024.
  • Nine countries have no women ministers at all, up from seven in the previous year.
  • The number of gender-balanced cabinets (≥50% women) fell from 15 to just 9.

Global Leadership Statistics

• 27 countries currently have a woman Head of State or Government, an increase from 21 five years ago.
• However, 103 countries have never had a woman in the highest executive office — a stark indication of persisting gender gaps.

India’s Performance: Among the Lowest

• India is ranked 174 out of 181 countries, placing it in the second-lowest category (2%–9.9% women in cabinet).
• India has one of the lowest shares of women cabinet ministers globally.
• The findings align with recent declines in women’s representation:
  • Female representation in Parliament and ministerial roles has also dropped, as highlighted in other 2025 reports (e.g., WEF Gender Gap Report).

(Source: UN Women)