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Japan will likely postpone its 2020 goal of getting women into 30% of the nation's leadership positions, according to a draft of the government's latest policy plan for gender equality.
The world's third-largest economy will now aim to hit its target “as early in the 2020s as possible,” according to a draft document released by the Cabinet Office on Tuesday. The country will aim to eliminate all gender bias in leadership position by the 2030s, the plan said.
Covid-19 Creates New Headwind for Abe's Vow to Promote Women (1)
Reaching those lofty goals will require a lot of work. Even after years of government talk about its 2020 goal, women still make up just 10% of Japan's lower house of parliament and hold only 6% of the board seats at companies listed on the country's broadest major stock index.
In the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report 2020, Japan ranks 121st among countries.
Pandemic Throws Up New Challenges for Gender Equality in Japan (Podcast)
In recent years, the percentage of Japanese women in the workforce has risen to above U.S. levels. But most of the new jobs have been in part-time positions that have been hit hard by Covid-19, so women have suffered about two-thirds of Japan's job losses during the crisis.
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