Nicaragua is first in the world (64.3%) in share of women Cabinet members—those serving as heads of ministries—as of January 2025, and ranks third in the world for its share of women parliamentarians (55%).
Figures on the most recent data on women in executive positions and national parliaments was presented in the “Women in Politics: 2025” Map, prepared by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and UN Women.
Women Ministers (heading government ministries)
In a list of about 200 countries, the top five countries with the highest representation of women at the helm of ministries worldwide are as follows:
- Nicaragua
- Finland
- Iceland
- Liechtenstein
- Estonia
Women in Parliaments
In parliamentary representation, countries are ranked according to the percentage of women in unicameral parliaments or the lower house of parliament, reflecting elections/appointments up to January 1, 2025. The top five countries worldwide:
- Rwanda
- Cuba
- Nicaragua
- Mexico
- Andorra
Cuba (55.7%), Nicaragua (55%) and Mexico (50.2%) ranked within the top five while other Latin American countries also ranked relatively high in women’s representation in parliament: Costa Rica ranked 7th and Bolivia came in 8th. Only six countries in the world have achieved gender parity in their lower or single legislative house (National Assembly, Congress, or Parliament) as of January 1.
As a region, the Americas, which includes North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean, has the highest percentage of women in unicameral parliaments or the lower house of parliament, with 35.3%, beating Europe, which ranked second with 31.8%. The world average is 27.2%.
Despite the successes in women’s representation in Latin America and the Caribbean, the top-ranked Americas region has its average brought down by the poor performances of the United States and Canada, with the United States ranking 77th in the world and with Canada coming into the 69th spot.
Only one country in all of Europe, Andorra, has achieved equal representation (50%) of women in its governing body.
The “Women in Politics: 2025” Map, with detailed information, is attached below as a PDF.
