Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in World
World: Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments was 27.2% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in World, 1997–2025
Source: Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in World stood at 27.2%. That is the highest value across all 29 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and up 19.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in World peaked at 27.2% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 11.7%, in 1997.
That places World 15th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 29 years of available data.
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in World, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 11.7% | — |
| 1998 | 13.1% | +11.8% |
| 1999 | 13.5% | +3.4% |
| 2000 | 13.9% | +2.8% |
| 2001 | 14.1% | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 15.2% | +7.9% |
| 2003 | 15.2% | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 15.9% | +4.7% |
| 2005 | 16.5% | +3.6% |
| 2006 | 17.0% | +3.0% |
| 2007 | 17.9% | +5.3% |
| 2008 | 18.4% | +3.2% |
| 2009 | 19.0% | +3.2% |
| 2010 | 19.2% | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 19.8% | +3.5% |
| 2012 | 20.8% | +4.7% |
| 2013 | 21.8% | +4.9% |
| 2014 | 22.2% | +1.9% |
| 2015 | 22.8% | +3.0% |
| 2016 | 23.1% | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 23.6% | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 24.1% | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 24.6% | +2.2% |
| 2020 | 25.6% | +3.8% |
| 2021 | 26.1% | +2.1% |
| 2022 | 26.5% | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 26.7% | +1.0% |
| 2024 | 27.0% | +1.1% |
| 2025 | 27.2% | +0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 12.8% | 11.7% | 13.5% | 3 |
| 2000s | 16.3% | 13.9% | 19.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 22.2% | 19.2% | 24.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.5% | 25.6% | 27.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near World
- 12 New Zealand 45.5% compare
- 13 Finland 45.5% compare
- 14 Ecuador 45.0% compare
- 15 Sweden 45.0% compare
- 16 South Africa 44.9% compare
- 17 Cape Verde 44.4% compare
- 18 Spain 44.3% compare
More public sector data for World
- Arms imports 28.82 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 3.54 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0003 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate -2.86 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 28.82 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 325.74 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0237 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate 11.18 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 2.65 trillion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 228.6 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in World?
- Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in World was 27.2% in 2025, according to Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
- What is the highest proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments recorded in World?
- The highest recorded value was 27.2% in 2025.
- What is the lowest proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments recorded in World?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.7% in 1997.
- How does World rank for proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments?
- World ranks 15th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments rising or falling in World?
- Over the last ten years it is up 19.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this World data come from?
- The figures come from Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), published as part of Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Women in parliaments are the percentage of parliamentary seats in a single or lower chamber held by women.