Uncertain times impact progress towards gender equality

“A volatile global economy, war in our region, organised crime, youth violence, and other serious societal issues affect the whole of society—including gender equality. In uncertain times, the government must ensure that gender equality policy is both long-term and concrete. That’s when we see results and can reach the goals that have been set. At the same time, gender equality is a crucial tool for addressing these societal challenges,” says Peter Vikström, Head of Analysis at the Swedish Gender Equality Agency.

For several years, Swedish gender equality policy has primarily focused on men’s violence against women, including intimate partner violence and honour-based violence and oppression. The Gender Equality Agency is tasked with annually analysing the outcomes of measures taken by authorities and other actors. The agency finds that the government needs to further develop its work in order to strengthen the impact of gender equality policy—particularly through the national budget and in the governance of public agencies.

“We need both long-term and forceful efforts. Gender equality measures primarily target women as a group. There is a lack of actions aimed at increasing men’s responsibility and involvement. We need to focus on how more boys and men can actively take responsibility for promoting gender equality—and what they, too, stand to gain from a more equal society. A gender-equal society can help reduce polarisation and prevent violence,” says Peter Vikström.

Facts: The state of gender equality in Sweden

Swedish gender equality policy is based on six sub-goals set by the government. The Swedish Gender Equality Agency’s overall assessment shows that progress towards these goals is slow. In several areas, there is no improvement—or even a downward trend.

• Sub-goal: Equal distribution of power and influence. Women and men have unequal conditions for participating in decision-making, not least due to hate, threats, and harassment. National-level politics is more gender-equal than at the local level. Women remain underrepresented in senior positions in business, academia, and local government.
• Sub-goal: Economic equality. There are still significant income disparities between women and men. Occupations dominated by women generally offer lower pay and poorer working conditions. Women are more likely to work part-time and to be absent from the labour market. Changes to the pension system have improved gender equality among pensioners somewhat, but previous income gaps and other factors mean a pension gap between women and men remains.
• Sub-goal: Gender-equal education. Education is still characterised by boys and men making different study choices and achieving different academic outcomes compared to girls and women. There are also gender differences in study environments and mental health. Schools are not fully succeeding in providing a safe and equal learning environment.
• Sub-goal: Even distribution of unpaid housework and care work. Women bear the main responsibility for both childcare and the care of elderly relatives. Although men’s uptake of parental leave has increased slightly, this progress has stalled. The division of unpaid domestic and care work remains unequal.
• Sub-goal: Gender-equal health. Health disparities between women and men remain significant. Women—especially younger women—report poorer mental health and account for the majority of stress-related sick leave. Women live longer, but also spend more years with reduced functional ability.
• Sub-goal: Men's violence against women must end. Women are more likely to be subjected to severe and repeated violence by a partner, as well as to sexual offences. Although some reductions can be seen in certain groups, the overall level of victimisation remains high. The extent of honour-based violence and oppression is difficult to map, but several studies show that exposure is widespread among both young women and men.