New research reveals Australia one of the best places in the Commonwealth to be born a girl

Girls play soccer in Rwanda, which scored highly (10th) despite being one of the poorest Commonwealth countries.

A new report published yesterday by the Royal Commonwealth Society and Plan reveals that Australia is ranked as the sixth-best place in the Commonwealth to be born a girl.

New Zealand is the best place in the Commonwealth to be born a girl, whilst Sierra Leone and Nigeria are among the worst.

The report aligns with the Commonwealth's 2011 theme, 'Women as Agents of Change'.

As Commonwealth Day is marked today in ceremonies across Australia and the world, this new research shows that girls and women continue to be seriously disadvantaged and that nowhere across the Commonwealth are men and women living equally.

'Because You're a Girl: Growing Up in the Commonwealth' compares how well females are doing relative to males in their country across eight indicators.

The report uses best available data on indicators that reflect various aspects of a girl's life cycle, from survival (e.g. life expectancy, nutrition) to achievement (e.g. athletes and medals at the Commonwealth Games, Commonwealth Scholarships won).

Australia ranks highly in female sports participation, along with Canada and Nigeria.

The report suggests that it is political will – and not economic wealth – which is most important in advancing gender equality. Some of the poorest countries in the Commonwealth do relatively well against the eight indicators used in the report, while some rich countries remain a long way off gender equality.

Key findings of the report include:

• New Zealand tops the chart as the best place in the Commonwealth to be born a girl, closely followed by Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago. Australia comes in at sixth place.

• At the bottom of the chart, ranking joint 50th, are Nigeria and Sierra Leone. India and Pakistan both score poorly, coming in 41st and 45th respectively.

• Five times more girls between the ages of 15 and 19 give birth in Nigeria and Sierra Leone than in New Zealand on average, and girls in New Zealand can expect twice the number of years in school than girls in Nigeria.

• Poverty levels do not always correlate with gender inequality. Rwanda (10th) Mozambique (21st),and Malawi (23rd) all score highly despite being some of the poorest Commonwealth countries.

• The starkest evidence of gender inequality is revealed by the pay gap indicator. Even in the best performing countries, women only earn about four-fifths of male income on average. In New Zealand – the star performer in the final rankings – women only earn about 72 per cent of the average income and there are still twice as many men in New Zealand's Parliament as women.
  
  
• Despite decades of campaigning in Western Commonwealth countries, Rwanda and South Africa top the female political participation table. Indeed Rwanda ranks first in the world in this regard. The United Kingdom ties with Pakistan at joint 17th. 

The Director of the Royal Commonwealth Society, Dr Danny Sriskandarajah said: "Our research shows that women and men are not living as equals in any Commonwealth country. Even those that do well in our Report Card are far from equality-utopias. I hope Commonwealth leaders will use this year to show the political leadership that is needed to promote women as agents of change. The Commonwealth must be at the vanguard of the fight for gender equality."

The chief executive of Plan in Australia, Ian Wishart, said: "Our research shows that in those Commonwealth countries that have shown bold political will, there has been great progress towards realising girls' rights, lifting them out of poverty.

"But my message to the Commonwealth today is that much more needs to be done. Globally 75 million girls remain out of school and robbed of a fulfilling future. Often undervalued and neglected, and held back by their gender and age, girls are prevented from contributing to the societies in which they live. This holds us all back.

"Plan's 'Because I am a Girl' campaign challenges each of us to take practical action towards a Commonwealth and a world in which every girl can fulfil their potential."

Ends

To speak to Plan International Australia CEO Ian Wishart, contact:

David Cook    
Media Officer    
Plan International Australia    
Mobile: 0448 816 900    
Email: david.cook@plan.org.au
Email: Sharyn.hanly@plan.org.au

The President of the ACT branch of the Royal Commonwealth Society, Hugh Craft, is available for comment. To speak to Mr Craft, contact: Terry Walls Mobile: 0407 065 570

Download 'Because You're a Girl: Growing Up in the Commonwealth'

Find out more information about the Because I am a Girl reports and campaign.