Sub-Saharan Africa has closed 68.8 percent of the gap between women and men, up from 68 percent last year. The figure comes from the 2026 Global Gender Gap Report, published on September 16 by the World Economic Forum. At the current pace, the region will need another 102 years to reach full equality. That is five years fewer than the previous projection, but far more than the 60 years forecast for Latin America or the 70 for Europe. Worldwide, the wait is put at about 120 years.
The differences within the continent are large. Namibia ranks fourth in the world with 84.5 percent of its gap closed, ahead of most wealthy countries. Nigeria gained 2.7 points to reach 67.6 percent. Chad comes last in the index at 57.8 percent.
Since 2006, the region has gained six points overall. The clearest progress is in the economy, where 70.6 percent of the gap is now closed, which puts sub-Saharan Africa fourth among world regions in that area. The share of women among legislators, senior officials and managers has risen by 28.7 points in twenty years. Perceived wage equality, on the other hand, has fallen by 10.1 points over the same period. Women are reaching more senior positions without being paid as much as men.
Education remains the region’s weak point compared with the rest of the world, even though 89.5 percent of the gap there is closed. Enrolment in higher education is the indicator that has improved most, gaining 28.1 points since 2006. Health has barely changed. In politics, only 18.1 percent of the gap is closed, despite an 11.6 point rise in parliamentary representation over two decades.
The report also points to a global slowdown that affects Africa as much as other regions. According to the LinkedIn data it cites, women’s share of the workforce rose from 39.9 percent in 2015 to 41.8 percent in June 2026. Their presence in senior leadership rose only from 26.7 to 29.6 percent, and hiring of women has stalled since 2022.