Global sector monitor shows men twice as likely to have leadership roles

Despite some progress, women are still under-represented in civil society leadership, with a man still twice as likely to have a leadership position, according to the 2021 FAIR SHARE Monitor.

The FAIR SHARE Monitor tracks progress towards gender equality, collecting data on the proportion of female staff and leaders in civil society organisations internationally. Its goal is to see a fair share of women leaders – defined as at least 50%, or a correspondingly higher proportion if the workforce consists of more than 50% women – by 2030.

The monitor looks at the number of staff broken down by gender, number of women in the senior management team, number of women on the supervisory / trustee board, and equality, diversity or inclusion policies. It began collecting this data in 2019 and will continue until 2030, in line with Goal 5 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda.

This year too, for the first time, it also collected data on Black, Brown, Indigenous women and women of colour.

56 civil society organisations took part in the 2021 Monitor, up from 31 in 2020, with the findings revealing that while women comprise around 63%-70% of the international civil society workforce, this is not reflected in the leadership of the sector. The proportion of women on staff has grown 5% since last year, but the proportion of women leaders has stayed at 46% – with 31% on senior management teams, and the remaining 15% on boards.

Boards lag furthest behind

The report shows that boards lag furthest behind when it comes to gender equality, although the proportion of boards with a majority of women increased from 25% in 2019 to 36% this year.

And, while senior management teams are more representative than boards, this number has stagnated since last year. Senior management teams with a majority of men, on the other hand, have increased from 45% to 48%.

Statistics on Black, Brown, Indigenous women and women of colour in leadership

The Monitor also revealed some key statistics on Black, Brown, Indigenous women and women of colour (BIWoC) in civil society leadership roles. 43 of the 56 organisations had data to share here, with the findings including:

– 44% of these organisations have a female CEO or executive director, but only 26% of those women are BIWoC

– 16% of these organisations had no BIWoC in their boards

– 42% had no BIWoC in senior management

– 9% had no BIWoC in leadership

– 26% are led by BIWoC

– Women make up 46% of members of boards, but of these only 31% are BIWoC

– Women make up 46% of the senior management, but only 30% are BIWoC

The full report can be accessed on the FAIR SHARE of Women Leaders site.

Related article:

Simona Biancu: Why we need to take a more feminist approach to nonprofit leadership

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