Social equity indicators

Gender Inequality Index (GII)

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Definition

The Gender Inequality Index is a UNDP composite measure, introduced in the 2010 Human Development Report, that reflects inequality in achievements between women and men in three dimensions — reproductive health, empowerment, and the labour market — using five indicators: maternal mortality ratio, adolescent fertility rate, parliamentary representation, secondary education attainment, and labour force participation. Values range from 0 (equality) to 1 (complete inequality), interpreted as the percentage of potential human development lost.

References

EBSCO Research StartersGender Inequality Index (three dimensions; five indicators; 0–1 scale; introduced 2010 by UNDP)

composition and interpretation

WHOGender Inequality Index (GII) (composite measure of inequality in reproductive health, empowerment and labour market; higher values = worse achievements; source: UNDP HDR)

official definition

Overview

What it means

Unlike the GDI, which compares HDI levels, the GII directly measures losses from inequality and includes reproductive health — the first inequality index to do so. Higher values indicate worse outcomes: no country achieves zero, meaning every country forfeits some human development to gender inequality.

How it is used

GII is a standard reference in SDG 5 reporting, country gender diagnostics, and policy evaluation, used alongside GDI and the Global Gender Gap Index for complementary perspectives.

Why it matters

It quantifies gender inequality as a development cost, making the case that equality is not only a rights issue but a measurable drag on national progress.