Namibia ranks first in Africa and eighth in the world in the Global Gender Gap Annual Report published by the World Economic Forum.

This was revealed by the African director of the forum, Chido Munyati, during a courtesy call with President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah.

Munyati highlighted that Namibia’s high ranking reflects the country’s commitment to gender equity, noting that women are actively included in important national conversations and are at the forefront of social and economic development.

She pointed out the significance of Namibia having a female head of state, vice president, and leader of parliament as part of this progress.

"We also shared our gender equity report, which is a global flagship report on gender equity at the World Economic Forum. It means it's a very powerful symbolically. It says that women are included in important conversations in the country. It means that gender equity is a priority for the economy and that women are really at the forefront of both the social and economic development of Namibia. And to be ranked eighth globally in the world, I think, is really a remarkable achievement of work that's taken place in the past and what we see coming to fruition now with the female head of state, vice president and leader of parliament."