Trends and Opportunities to Advance Gender Equality in Asia and the Pacific: Web Introduction

Over the last three years, the WeEmpowerAsia programme (WEA) has worked to increase the number of women who lead and participate in business in China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam, during which period there has been much progress on gender equality in business in Asia. From 2018 to 2021, there was a 186 per cent increase in companies in Asia and the Pacific that have signed the UN Women and UN Global Compact’s Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs). In Asia and the Pacific, 400 companies have completed the United Nations Global Compact’s Women’s Empowerment Principles Gender Gap Analysis Tool (WEPs Tool) over the last four years.

This report draws on a multitude of primary and secondary sources that look at over 2,250 companies already committed to promoting gender equality in Asia. Based on this data, the report finds that despite companies’ commitment, concrete implementation is just beginning. Strong commitments continue to outpace actions.

The report is written for businesses in Asia and the Pacific, as well as for gender and private sector field builders (such as the United Nations, support organizations, researchers, donors, and investors), stock exchanges, policy makers, and regulators in Asia and the Pacific. It seeks to provide them with the motivation, inspiration, and recommendations to advance gender equality in the private sector.

Largely guided by the WEPs, the report offers a depth of insights, emerging best practices, and identifies forward-looking actions that companies in Asia and the Pacific can take to promote gender equality through their business operations.