The age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) brings about unprecedented opportunities as well as new challenges. To take full advantage of new technologies, we need to place emphasis on what makes us human: the capacity to learn new skills as well as our creativity, empathy and ingenuity. By developing our unique traits and talents, humanity can cope with increasingly fast technological change and ensure broad-based progress for all.
The equal contribution of women and men in this process of deep economic and societal transformation is critical. More than ever, societies cannot afford to lose out on the skills, ideas and perspectives of half of humanity to realize the promise of a more prosperous and human- centric future that well-governed innovation and technology can bring.
This report finds that, globally, although many countries have achieved important milestones towards gender parity across education, health, economic and political systems, there remains much to be done. On the one hand, countries where the next generation of women are becoming leaders in their domains are poised for further success. On the other hand, this year’s analysis also warns about the possible emergence of new gender gaps in advanced technologies, such as the risks associated with emerging gender gaps in Artificial Intelligence-related skills. In an era when human skills are increasingly important and complementary to technology, the world cannot afford to deprive itself of women’s talent in sectors in which talent is already scarce.
