LeadersTalk hosted by OECD Development Centre

Can we truly achieve gender equality when women are still expected to shoulder most caregiving responsibilities? The Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) 2023 highlights a significant gap: while 176 countries out of 178 offer maternity leave, only 122 provide paid paternity leave. This disparity highlights how far we are from seeing women and men as equal partners at home. Equal parental leave – one of the Reykjavík Action Items – has been shown to significantly benefit both children’s and parents’ well-being. For women, it helps alleviate the burden of juggling multiple roles, and for men, it creates space for them to take a more active role at home, fostering stronger family bonds and more balanced partnerships. However, persistent social expectations around gender roles and restrictive norms of masculinities continue to hinder women’s empowerment and limit men’s involvement in caregiving. In fact, data from the Reykjavík Index for Leadership even suggests that younger generations may hold more rigid views on gender roles that their parents, posing a threat to the Reykjavík Action Items including Equal pay, Ending gender-based violence and Equal representation. So how can we foster a society where women and men are seen as equal partners, both at home and beyond? This session will explore practical strategies to shift these entrenched norms, particularly among youth, and how promoting shared responsibilities at home can contribute to a more equitable society.