International Women’s Day raises awareness of inequalities and oppression of women around the world. Here are some facts that you might not know.
- In Saudi Arabia women are not allowed to drive a car. Women are generally just cautioned if they are caught driving, but some have been sentenced to be lashed.
- In the UK there is still a huge gender pay gap despite the equal pay act of 1970. It has been estimated that women are likely to earn £300,000 less than men over their working lives. Click here to read more about the UK gender pay gap.
- According to the World Health Organisation, in Somalia, about 97 percent of girls undergo female genital mutilation.
- In England and Wales, two women a week are killed by their partners or ex partners. 25% of children in England and Wales have witnessed domestic abuse.
- Fewer than one in ten executive directors at Britain’s top companies are women. However, Britain is ahead of many countries in this respect. Germany, France, Norway and Switzerland have no female CEOs in their top companies. Read more about female boardroom representation here.
- There are nearly 200 countries in the world but only 22 have female heads of state. These include Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago.
Happy International Women’s Day and let’s keep raising awareness.