Albania ranks 57th out of 167 countries on an index measuring women’s empowerment and well-being. It ranks the lowest in the region: 33 places below Serbia, 20 places below North Macedonia, 17 places below Montenegro and 2 places below Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Women Peace and Security (WPS) index provides important insights into patterns and progress regarding women’s empowerment around the world. The report states that “countries are more peaceful and prosperous when women are accorded full and equal rights and opportunities.”
According to the results, only one country– Iceland– well in every aspect of women’s lives. Other top performers include Switzerland, Finland, Denmark, and Norway. The worst countries to be a woman, according to the index include Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria, and Pakistan.
The report uses three basic dimensions to ascertain women’s well-being– inclusion (economic, social, political), justice (formal laws and informal discrimination), and security (at home, in the community and at a societal level). These are captured through 11 indicators that are then aggregated at a national level to create a global ranking out of 167 countries.
It was created in collaboration between Georgetown University’s Institute for Women, Peace, and Security and the Peace Research Institute Oslo.
According to the report, Albania falls short in terms of its employment and financial inclusion of its female citizens. Education was also a concern with women only having a mean of 9.8 years of formal education. Less than half (46.4%) of women go on to employment.
Some 6% of Albanian men believe that it is unacceptable for a woman to work. More worryingly, over 8% of Albanian women will suffer intimate partner violence within a 12 month time frame– figures from the UN and other studies show that 63% of Albanian women will suffer such violence during their lifetime.
Meanwhile, 63% of Albanian women perceive their community to be safe, despite the risk that domestic violence poses.