Content for Mains Enrichment (CME)
Source: IE
Iceland, known for its gender equality, witnessed a one-day strike by women, including Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdóttir, to protest gender discrimination. Despite topping global gender gap rankings for 14 consecutive years, two major issues persist:
- Gender pay gap, where women earn 21% less than men in some professions
- Gender-based violence affects over 40% of women.
The goal is to challenge societal mindsets that perpetuate these inequalities. In 1975, Iceland’s women staged their first strike, leading to a law granting equal rights regardless of gender a year later.
Usage: The example can be used to show how pervasive is Gender inequality, even in countries with consistently high gender rankings. Similarly, you can also show that Gender inequality remains pervasive in low as well as very high-income countries.
