Sustainable Development Goal 5
"Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls"
Linkage with other SDGs
Gender equality is essential for sustainable development, empowering women and girls to participate fully in all aspects of society. Addressing gender inequalities creates a ripple effect, improving health, education, economic growth, and social stability, while fostering environmental sustainability.
The following direct and indirect interlinkages exist between SDG 5 and all other SDGs:
SDG 1 - No Poverty: Women are disproportionately affected by poverty due to systemic barriers to education, employment, and ownership of assets. Economic empowerment for women reduces poverty at both individual and household levels. Example: Microfinance initiatives in Bangladesh targeting women entrepreneurs have lifted thousands of families out of poverty by increasing household income.
SDG 2 - Zero Hunger: Women are key contributors to global food security, often playing central roles in agricultural production and nutrition. Gender inequality limits access to land, credit, and resources, reducing agricultural productivity and exacerbating hunger. Example: In Kenya, women-led farming cooperatives have increased local food supplies, addressing hunger while empowering women economically.
SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being: Gender equality improves access to maternal healthcare, reducing maternal and infant mortality rates. Women’s empowerment in healthcare decision-making leads to healthier families and communities. Example: In Nepal, community health programs focused on women’s reproductive health have significantly reduced maternal mortality rates.
SDG 4 - Quality Education: Educating girls is one of the most effective ways to promote gender equality. Access to education empowers women to make informed decisions, pursue careers, and contribute meaningfully to their families and society. Example: The Malala Fund has successfully increased access to education for girls in Pakistan, reducing gender disparities in literacy and employment.
SDG 6 - Clean Water and Sanitation: Women and girls are disproportionately burdened by the lack of access to clean water and sanitation, often spending hours collecting water. Providing water and sanitation facilities frees up time for education and economic activities. Example: Community water projects in Tanzania have reduced the time women spend collecting water, enabling greater participation in school and work.
SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy: Women are disproportionately affected by energy poverty, as they often rely on unsafe cooking fuels that cause health issues. Access to clean energy reduces this burden and enables income-generating activities. Example: Solar energy initiatives in India have empowered women by providing clean cooking solutions and lighting for homes, improving health and livelihoods.
SDG 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth: Gender equality in the workforce drives economic growth and productivity. Women’s participation in formal and informal employment contributes significantly to national economies. Example: Rwanda’s gender-inclusive policies have increased female workforce participation, boosting household incomes and national economic growth.
SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities: Gender inequality is a major contributor to social disparities. Addressing systemic barriers to women’s participation reduces overall inequalities within and between communities. Example: Legislative reforms in Nordic countries, such as paid parental leave, have narrowed gender and income gaps, promoting equality.
SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities: Gender-sensitive urban planning ensures safe, accessible spaces for women and girls, addressing issues like gender-based violence and promoting economic participation. Example: Public transportation safety initiatives in Mexico City have improved women’s mobility and access to economic opportunities.
SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production: Women play a key role in household consumption patterns and food production. Empowering women to adopt sustainable practices contributes to environmentally responsible systems. Example: Women-led recycling initiatives in Ghana have promoted environmental sustainability and provided income for low-income households.
SDG 13 - Climate Action: Women are disproportionately affected by climate change due to social vulnerabilities and their roles in agriculture and resource management. Empowering women in climate adaptation strategies ensures equitable and effective solutions. Example: Women-focused climate adaptation projects in Bangladesh have improved community resilience to floods and rising sea levels.
SDG 14 - Life Below Water: Gender-responsive marine conservation ensures women’s involvement in decision-making processes, particularly in coastal communities reliant on fisheries for livelihoods. Example: Women-led mangrove restoration projects in Indonesia have improved marine biodiversity while supporting livelihoods.
SDG 15 - Life on Land: Women often depend on forests and land for livelihoods and food security. Ensuring women’s access to land rights and conservation initiatives strengthens ecosystems and community resilience. Example: Agroforestry projects in Uganda have empowered women farmers while restoring degraded land.
SDG 16 - Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions: Gender equality promotes inclusive governance and reduces gender-based violence, contributing to peaceful and equitable societies. Example: Women’s participation in peace-building initiatives in Liberia has fostered reconciliation and social stability.
SDG 17 - Partnerships for the Goals: Global partnerships supporting gender equality drive progress across multiple sectors, leveraging financial resources and knowledge-sharing to empower women and girls. Example: The UN Women’s HeForShe campaign has built global coalitions advocating for gender equality across industries and governments.
Consquence of failing to reach targets
If gender equality is not achieved, the impacts reverberate across all other SDGs:
- Poverty persists (SDG 1), as women remain excluded from economic opportunities.
- Hunger worsens (SDG 2), as women’s contributions to agriculture are undervalued and under-resourced.
- Health systems (SDG 3) are strained, with maternal mortality and gender-based health inequities persisting.
- Climate adaptation (SDG 13) weakens, as women’s voices remain underrepresented in decision-making processes.
Gender equality is a multiplier for progress across all dimensions of development. Empowering women and girls is not only a matter of justice but also a prerequisite for achieving sustainable and inclusive growth.
SDG 5: Targets, Indicators, Progress and Data
End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere.
5.1.1: Whether or not legal frameworks are in place to promote, enforce and monitor equality and non‑discrimination on the basis of sex.
Based on data collected in 2022 in 120 countries, 55% of the countries lacked non-discrimination laws that prohibit direct and indirect discrimination against women and half of the countries continued to lack quotas for women in the national parliament.
Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation.
5.2.1: Proportion of ever-partnered women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to physical, sexual or psychological violence by a current or former intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by form of violence and by age.
5.2.2: Proportion of women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to sexual violence by persons other than an intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by age and place of occurrence.
No data available
No data available
Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation.
5.3.1: Proportion of women aged 20-24 years who were married or in a union before age 15 and before age 18.
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5.3.2: Proportion of girls and women aged 15-49 years who have undergone female genital mutilation/cutting, by age
- Globally, around 640 million girls and women were married before age 18, with India accounting for one-third. While progress has reduced child marriage, still, one in five young women (19%) are married before 18, down 22% in 2013. Despite averting 68 million child marriages in this period, the pace isn't sufficient to eliminate the practice by 2030.
- Over 230 million girls and women worldwide are estimated have undergone female genital mutilation as of 2024, an increase of 30 million compared to the last estimate in 2016.
Recognise and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate.
5.4.1: Proportion of time spent on unpaid domestic and care work, by sex, age and location.
On an average day, women spend about 2.5 times as many hours in unpaid domestic and care work as men, according to the latest data between 2000 and 2022.
Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life.
5.5.1: Proportion of seats held by women in (a) national parliaments and (b) local governments.
5.5.2: Proportion of women in managerial positions.
Progress in women’s political participation remains slow. As of January 1, 2024, women held 26.9% of seats in national parliaments worldwide, marking a modest increase of 4.6 percentage points since 2015 (22.3%). In local governments, the participation was higher at 35.5% as of 1 January 2023. While global employment sees nearly 40% representation from women, they only held 27.5% of management positions in 2022, a notable decrease from 28.5% in 2021.
Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences.
5.6.1: Proportion of women aged 15-49 years who make their own informed decisions regarding sexual relations, contraceptive use and reproductive health care.
5.6.2: Number of countries with laws and regulations that guarantee full and equal access to women and men aged 15 years and older to sexual and reproductive health care, information and education.
Not reported on UN website
Undertake reforms to give women equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to ownership and control over land and other forms of property, financial services, inheritance and natural resources, in accordance with national laws.
5.A.1: (a) Proportion of total agricultural population with ownership or secure rights over agricultural land, by sex; and (b) share of women among owners or rights-bearers of agricultural land, by type of tenure.
5.A.2: Proportion of countries where the legal framework (including customary law) guarantees women’s equal rights to land ownership and/or control.
In one in three of the 49 countries with data, less than 50% of women and men have ownership or secure rights over agricultural land. Furthermore, there is a notable disparity between women and men’s agricultural land ownership, with men owning land at least twice as often as women in almost half of the countries. Legal protections for women’s land rights are low or not existent in approximately 58% of the reporting countries.
Enhance the use of enabling technology, in particular information and communications technology, to promote the empowerment of women.
5.B.1: Proportion of individuals who own a mobile telephone, by sex.
In 2023, 78% of the global population aged 10 and above owned a mobile phone. Women were approximately 8% less likely to own a mobile phone than men in 2023, a decrease from 10% in 2020.
Adopt and strengthen sound policies and enforceable legislation for the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at all levels.
5.C.1: Proportion of countries with systems to track and make public allocations for gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Data from 105 countries and areas for the period 2018–2021 show that 26% of countries globally have comprehensive systems to track and make public allocations for gender equality, 59% have some features of a system, and 15% do not have minimum elements of these systems.