The United Nations on Tuesday released a report titled Gender Snapshot 2025, which claimed that nearly 28% of jobs held by women globally remain at risk of being replaced by artificial intelligence, as compared to 21% for men. The annual global report presents a brief analysis of the progress made towards closing the global gender gap worldwide.
What did the report reveal?
The report uncovered a huge disparity in the tech world that’s only set to become more prominent in the future. As per data compiled by the United Nations, employed women are nearly twice as likely as men to be in jobs at high risk of automation.
As per the report’s authors, the gap is even more pronounced in high-income countries, particularly in the global north, reflecting both gendered occupational systems and the concentration of roles most vulnerable to generative AI, including clerical positions to a particular gender.
Who is most at risk?
Based on data collected from countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, the study confirms that the worker most at risk is a young woman who works in an urban setting with a medium to high level of education and relatively high income. Workers employed in sectors like banking, finance, insurance or the public sector are expected to bear the brunt of the burden.
This latest United Nations’ publication provides just an estimate of the disruption that AI is expected to cause in the global labor market. As per the report’s authors, if we don’t learn from our mistakes and invest in the technical capacity building of women, we risk exacerbating the gender pay gap into the future.
What are the possible solutions recommended by the UN?
The study further recommends creation of digital inclusion initiatives that provide women working in clerical positions with access to digital tools and training. “Enhanced participation of women in science, technology and mathematics fields and digital decision-making roles can also make a crucial difference in mitigating this change,’ the report notes.
As per the official UN estimates, closing the gender digital divide could pump an additional $1.5 trillion into the global economy by 2030 and over $100 trillion cumulatively by 2050. The study further highlighted that advocacy programs, training workshops and educational interventions regarding gender literacy can further help improve food security for 42 million, and spark $1.5 trillion in global growth by 2030.