NORTH AMERICA SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICA EUROPE AFRICA MIDDLE EAST ASIA & OCEANIA

MORE DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
LESS DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
% using
modern
contraception
Life
expectancy
at birth
Expected
number of
years in
school
% of
government
seats held
by women
Ratio of
female to
male earned
income
% using
modern
contraception
Life
expectancy
at birth
Expected
number of
years in
school
% of
government
seats held
by women
Ratio of
female to
male earned
income
% using
modern
contraception
Life
expectancy
at birth
Expected
number of
years in
school
% of
government
seats held
by women
Ratio of
female to
male earned
income
% using
modern
contraception
Life
expectancy
at birth
Expected
number of
years in
school
% of
government
seats held
by women
Ratio of
female to
male earned
income
% using
modern
contraception
Life
expectancy
at birth
Expected
number of
years in
school
% of
government
seats held
by women
Ratio of
female to
male earned
income
% using
modern
contraception
Life
expectancy
at birth
Expected
number of
years in
school
% of
government
seats held
by women
Ratio of
female to
male earned
income
RICHARD JOHNSON / NATIONAL POST SOURCE: THE COMPLETE MOTHERS INDEX 2012 BY SAVE THE CHILDREN
A WOMANS PLACE
Canada ranked 17th on a list of the best and worst places to
be a woman in the world. In the report released Tuesday,
researchers from Save the Children looked at the health,
education and economic status of women in 165 countries to
develop the ranking, with Norway claiming the top spot and
Somalia at the bottom. A senior adviser at Save the Children
said Canada fell behind other developed countries partly due
to the healthcare conditions for women in First Nations and
Inuit communities.
Advisor Cicely McWilliam said other changes were also
needed to see Canada get into the top ten -- including higher
averages in length and compensation for maternity leave and
average length of education.
The womens index was combined with a childrens index to
calculate an overall ranking on the conditions for mothers
throughout the world, where Norway also placed at the top.
The indicators for the womens index were selected with the
wellbeing of mothers in mind, said lead researcher Nikki
Gillette. Such indicators included the average length of a
womans education, female representation in government
and life expectancy and prevalence of contraceptives.
Canada dropped three spots from the previous womens
index, despite rises in life expectancy and female representa-
tion in government following last years federal election.
Its likely that this fall is due to greater improvements made
by the other countries, Ms. Gillette said.
The ranking was split into three tiers, denoting whether
countries were more developed, less developed or least
developed. Israel was placed in the Less Developed category
where it took first place. Within each tier, indicators were
relative to the development. Rwanda was ranked first in
Least Developed. Each tier had a slightly different set of
indicators and countries scores were relative to other
countries in their development group.
Ms. Gillette said researchers based the tiered system off
development regions laid out in a 2008 version of United
Nations Population Divisions World Population Prospects.
The UN documents most recent version no longer classifies
by development regions.
Its a little bit contentious, I know, but we wanted to go with
one source and not shuffle countries around based on our
personal opinions, Ms. Gillette said, adding that people
have also voiced concerns about South Koreas placement in
the Less Developed tier.
Were not trying to infer that Israel or any other country is
necessarily more or less developed, thats the regional
grouping they have been assigned to.
The National Post looks at Save the Childrens womens
index, noting each countries scores in the most intriguing
categories that went into generating the ranking.
JAKE EDMISTON, NATIONAL POST
Algeria
Argentina
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bahrain
Barbados
Belize
Bolivia
Botswana
Brazil
Brunei
Darussalam
Cameroon
Cape Verde
Chile
China
Colombia
Congo
Costa Rica
Cte dIvoire
Cuba
Cyprus
Dominican
Republic
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Fiji
Gabon
Georgia
Ghana
Guatemala
Guyana
Honduras
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Israel
Jamaica
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Korea (N)
Korea (S)
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Lebanon
Libya
Malaysia
Maldives
Mauritius
Mexico
Mongolia
Morocco
Namibia
Nicaragua
Nigeria
Palestine
Oman
Pakistan
Panama
P.N.G.
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
South Africa
Sri Lanka
Suriname
Swaziland
Syria
Tajikistan
Thailand
Trinidad
& Tobago
Tunisia
Turkey
Turkmenistan
U.A.E.
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam
Zimbabwe
Afghanistan
Angola
Bangladesh
Benin
Bhutan
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cambodia
C. A. R.
Chad
Comoros
D.R.C.
Djibouti
Equatorial
Guinea
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Gambia
Guinea
Guinea-
Bissau
Haiti
Laos
Lesotho
Liberia
Madagascar
Malawi
Mali
Mauritania
Mozambique
Myanmar
Nepal
Niger
Rwanda
Senegal
Sierra Leone
Solomon Isl.
Somalia
South Sudan
Sudan
Tanzania
Timor-Leste
Togo
Uganda
Yemen
Zambia
52
64
19
13
60
31
53
31
34
42
77
n/a
12
75
80
77
74
79
76
80
78
69
51
77
81
54
14
17
13
12
13
13
18
13
13
12
14
15
10
7
38
8
16
18
19
20
11
30
8
10
0
14
Albania
Australia
Austria
Belarus
Belgium
Bosnia
Bulgaria
Canada
Croatia
Czech
Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Japan
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Malta
Moldova
Montenegro
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russia
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Ukraine
U.K.
U.S.
10
71
47
56
73
11
40
72
n/a
63
72
56
75
75
66
46
71
n/a
61
41
44
56
33
n/a
10
46
43
17
67
72
82
28
83
38
65
19
66
63
62
65
78
48
84
73
80
84
84
76
83
78
77
83
80
81
81
80
83
85
83
83
78
84
83
85
87
79
78
83
77
82
73
77
83
83
83
81
83
78
75
77
80
83
85
84
85
75
82
81
11
20
16
15
17
14
14
16
14
16
17
17
17
16
16
16
16
20
19
17
15
16
17
14
13
14
12
15
17
20
18
16
16
15
15
14
15
18
17
17
15
15
17
18
16
29
29
32
39
19
21
28
24
21
39
20
43
20
32
19
9
40
19
21
13
23
19
25
31
9
20
12
39
32
40
22
29
10
11
22
16
23
35
45
27
8
22
17
54
70
40
63
64
61
68
65
67
57
74
65
73
61
59
51
75
62
56
21
13
67
70
57
49
45
73
58
67
69
77
59
60
68
64
59
58
61
52
67
62
59
67
62
36
51
57
44
72
51
65
43
61
58
60
59
53
49
42
68
71
51
46
34
49
58
59
51
27
46
38
59
38
74
42
41
34
32
44
32
n/a
64
58
19
68
65
n/a
52
36
55
25
25
42
54
42
42
87
24
63
34
42
12
23
18
58
74
64
59
58
28
16
53
60
56
44
71
20
65
63
55
28
26
65
27
55
64
48
69
58
24
64
51
52
39
66
77
68
59
70
58
46
57
36
50
67
63
68
46
37
76
73
50
71
74
44
58
90
61
61
34
79
55
74
51
n/a
33
33
74
53
45
69
25
56
21
14
21
14
10
39
11
45
11
19
32
2
19
n/a
16
7
8
18
31
20
11
18
3
25
20
15
11
14
10
16
15
8
23
3
8
13
7
19
25
4
11
25
40
7
n/a
10
21
9
1
14
22
22
n/a
n/a
22
41
6
12
22
12
18
16
27
27
14
17
18
12
19
17
24
18
28
38
20
8
14
15
35
18
13
13
3
5
14
10
22
26
8
n/a
10
4
25
24
11
12
22
10
19
39
3
33
13
52
30
13
n/a
7
24
24
36
32
11
35
1
12
13
15
12
14
10
12
5
17
15
13
12
11
12
14
11
13
10
10
11
12
10
13
13
9
16
13
14
16
11
n/a
16
15
13
14
16
13
13
14
14
15
10
11
11
8
14
14
6
14
5
12
13
12
14
14
n/a
12
12
13
10
10
11
13
12
15
12
n/a
13
17
11
15
12
10
6
9
8
7
12
6
11
10
5
6
9
7
5
7
4
8
8
7
5
n/a
9
10
9
10
10
6
8
8
10
8
4
11
8
6
9
2
6
6
5
11
9
11
7
7
78
82
76
78
59
82
58
81
82
77
79
76
77
72
64
77
66
75
73
76
68
72
75
73
84
76
75
73
59
72
84
76
72
75
78
77
79
77
80
73
75
63
77
53
75
76
67
79
66
75
77
73
78
76
84
54
78
74
49
78
71
78
74
77
77
69
78
81
72
78
77
53
49
53
70
59
70
57
53
65
51
52
63
51
60
53
64
62
60
56
50
64
69
48
59
69
55
53
61
52
68
70
56
57
61
49
70
53
64
64
60
64
59
55
68
50
57
58
84
68
13
72
8
72
n/a
70
59
58
66
n/a
12
27
17
34
40
56
49
57
59
33
52
66
41
49
39
58
70
39
46
34
26
30
27
39
67
61
52
54
69
8
39
25
19
54
20
70
50
34
32
29
55
60
53
45
47
43
32
80
38
52
46
45
24
75
59
62
68
58
16
5
48
6
31
13
8
27
9
2
19
6
17
6
5
14
13
4
6
24
29
46
10
28
38
6
8
12
38
44
5
26
10
6
27
1
6
6
26
21
11
18
19
27