India sees 8.6% rise in percentage of women on boards between 2012 and 2020

Between 2012 and 2020, India saw 8.6% rise in the percentage of women on boards, with them holding 17% of board positions in 2020; also, 20% of female directors hold more than one board seat compared to 8% of men. These, among others, are the findings from advisory firm Egon Zehnder’s 2020 Global Board Diversity Tracker, released last week.

The report analysed data from 1,685 companies across 44 countries with a combined market capitalisation of more than $48 trillion. The report added that while there is progress in gender diversity globally, the rate of change is insignificant. For example, while women now make up 27.3% of all board leaders globally, up from 25.5% in 2018, they comprise just 2.1% of all board chairs, up from 1.5% in 2018.

“Globally, new board appointments made up 13.5% of all board positions in 2020, up from 11.4% in 2018. Of these, 30% were women, up from 27% in 2018. This means only 4% of all directors are women new to the board, only a 0.9% increase from 2018,” the report noted. “Positive change requires that women and other underrepresented candidates serve as leaders, not merely participants, on boards,” the report added.