Kingdom ranks low on gender equality

[geovalin]

Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon

In spite of gains, gender inequality in Cambodia remains significant, particularly in education and political empowerment, according to the World Economic Forum’s recently released 2015 Global Gender Gap Report.

While the Kingdom is ranked 109 out of 145 countries in the world, slipping one place compared with 2014, its score in the index actually improved, increasing from 0.652 to 0.662. The highest inequalities were in education, with a rank of 127, and political empowerment, with a rank of 109.

Educational attainment rates for women from primary through secondary school are nearly half that of men. Moreover, of the 4 per cent of primary school-aged children not in school at all, 90 per cent are female. Speaking by phone yesterday, Ros Salin, spokesman for the Ministry of Education, said that the gap exists primarily outside of the cities, in rural areas, where access to schools can be difficult and traditional values persist.

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