Switzerland broke into the top 10 for the first time this year, closing 76 percent of the country's gender gap. It climbed from No. 13 in 2009 and No. 26 in 2006, the first year the report was published. An increase in female representation in government has driven much of its rise; in the category of political empowerment, Switzerland ranked No. 13 this year (it was No. 40 in 2007). A female-majority cabinet was appointed in September 2010, although that occurred too recently to be reflected in the report data. The country ranked No. 30 for economic opportunity, No. 71 for education, and No. 74 for health (the other three factors on which countries were evaluated).
Top 10 countries for women: Global Gender Gap Index 2010
The World Economic Forum released its 2010 Global Gender Gap Report on Tuesday. The report, which indexed 134 countries this year, evaluates how much of the gender gap each country has eliminated through economic opportunity, health access, education, and political empowerment. Below are the 10 countries that have been most successful. You can also read more about this year's report at our Global News blog.
10. Switzerland
