
Photo: Rastapopulous · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 08 of 18 · Country Index 2026
Turkmenistan: Gender & Equality
How wide is the gap between women's and men's lives?
Turkmenistan is placed 172nd of 183 countries on gender & equality in the Country Index 2026, from 2 of its 4 key statistics. Readings behind it: Women's Political Empowerment Index 0.437 (2025); Firms with a Female Top Manager 6.084 (2025).
Gender & Equality
172nd
of 183 countries placed
Placed from 2 of 4 key statistics
01The evidence
The 4 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Turkmenistan on gender & equality — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used — or, for a survey-based key, each country’s latest reading; the grey ticks are every other country it was compared with, lowest on the left.
Key 1 of 4
Women, Business and the Law
World Bank Group
Why it is a key: The gap written into the statute book, which a country can close while outcomes lag for a generation.
2024 edition · data for 2024 · CC BY 4.0
No reading
WBL Index (0–100, where 100 is full legal parity)
Higher is better
World Bank Group publishes no 2024 figure for Turkmenistan, so the standing rests on the other keys.
Across the 190 countries in this edition, values run from 26.25 (Palestine) to 100 (Sweden); the world median is 81.25.
- World median
- 81.25
- Best in Central Asia
- 82.5 Uzbekistan
- Land neighbours
- Afghanistan 31.88 · Iran 31.25 · Kazakhstan 75.63 · Uzbekistan 82.5
Each grey tick is one of 190 countries in the 2024 edition.
Key 2 of 4
Women's Political Empowerment Index
V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg
Why it is a key: Political power held by women in practice — their civil liberties, their part in civil society and their share of political office — where the law and custom keys measure the rules they live under.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY-SA 4.0
0.437
Women's political empowerment index (0–1)
Higher is better
Turkmenistan: 0.437. Across the 176 countries in this edition, values run from 0.028 (Afghanistan) to 0.954 (Denmark); the world median is 0.772.
- World median
- 0.772
- Best in Central Asia
- 0.733 Kyrgyzstan
- Land neighbours
- Afghanistan 0.028 · Iran 0.32 · Kazakhstan 0.682 · Uzbekistan 0.643
Each grey tick is one of 176 countries in the 2025 edition.
Key 3 of 4
Firms with a Female Top Manager
World Bank Group
Why it is a key: The share of firms whose top manager is a woman: economic power held, beside the political power and the legal and social rules the other keys in this subject measure.
Latest reading per country, 2016–2025 · Turkmenistan’s is from 2024 · CC BY 4.0
6.084
Firms with a female top manager (%)
Higher is better
Turkmenistan: 6.084. Across the 179 countries at their latest reading, values run from 1.429 (Qatar) to 62.9 (Kiribati); the world median is 19.16.
- World median
- 19.16
- Best in Central Asia
- 31.1 Kazakhstan
- Land neighbours
- Afghanistan 9.579 · Kazakhstan 31.1 · Uzbekistan 12.34
Each grey tick is one of 179 countries at its latest reading, 2016–2025.
Key 4 of 4
Social Institutions and Gender Index
OECD
Why it is a key: Discrimination in social institutions and norms. Correlates 0.850 with Women, Business and the Law, inside the 0.92 bar, and kept because law and custom diverge widely.
2023 edition · data for 2023 · OECD Terms and Conditions — data clause
No reading
SIGI score (0 = no discrimination, 100 = absolute)
Lower is better
OECD publishes no 2023 figure for Turkmenistan, so the standing rests on the other keys.
Across the 140 countries in this edition, values run from 6.7 (Norway) to 67.4 (Mauritania); the world median is 25.2.
- World median
- 25.2
- Best in Central Asia
- 20.9 Kazakhstan
- Land neighbours
- Iran 62.9 · Kazakhstan 20.9
Each grey tick is one of 140 countries in the 2023 edition.
02Over time
Which way Turkmenistan is moving
Each key’s published value, edition by edition, beside the world median. The Country Index 2026 is the first edition of the standing, so the standing itself has no history to chart yet.
Women's Political Empowerment Index
Women's political empowerment index (0–1) · higher is better
TurkmenistanWorld median
Turkmenistan rose from 0.373 in 2000 to 0.437 in 2025; the world median went from 0.681 to 0.772.
Every year’s figures
Year Turkmenistan World median 2025 0.437 0.7715 2024 0.434 0.7745 2023 0.429 0.7755 2022 0.418 0.7825 2021 0.415 0.7785 2020 0.411 0.7755 2019 0.410 0.7665 2018 0.383 0.7715 2017 0.357 0.7710 2016 0.367 0.7780 2015 0.363 0.7755 2014 0.369 0.7795 2013 0.376 0.7730 2012 0.318 0.7740 2011 0.316 0.7650 2010 0.312 0.7610 2009 0.314 0.7515 2008 0.313 0.7505 2007 0.305 0.7380 2006 0.293 0.7290 2005 0.293 0.7350 2004 0.307 0.7205 2003 0.373 0.7160 2002 0.373 0.7150 2001 0.373 0.6950 2000 0.373 0.6810
03In context
Turkmenistan beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 183 countries on gender & equality, never a place within the region.
Turkmenistan and the countries it borders
The standing is each country’s place among all 183 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.
| Country | Standing | Women, Business and the LawWBL Index (0–100, where 100 is full legal parity) | Women's Political Empowerment IndexWomen's political empowerment index (0–1) | Firms with a Female Top ManagerFirms with a female top manager (%) | Social Institutions and Gender IndexSIGI score (0 = no discrimination, 100 = absolute) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| =90th | 75.63 | 0.682 | 31.1 | 20.9 | |
| 133rd | 82.5 | 0.643 | 12.34 | — | |
| 172nd | — | 0.437 | 6.084 | — | |
| 175th | 31.88 | 0.028 | 9.579 | — | |
| 181st | 31.25 | 0.32 | — | 62.9 |
“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.
Across Central Asia
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 183.
Kazakhstan=90th
Kyrgyzstan107th
Uzbekistan133rd
Tajikistan152nd
Turkmenistan172nd
Placed either side on gender & equality
The countries immediately above and below Turkmenistan in the topic’s list.
04Context, no vote
Where Turkmenistan is ahead of the world, and behind
5 more statistics filed under gender & equality, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.
Ahead of the world median3
Statistics on which Turkmenistan does better than the middle country measured.
Births Attended by Skilled Health StaffUNICEF · 2019 · world median 98.810098.8No real change since 2016
Turkmenistan: 100 · world median 98.8 · Births attended by skilled health staff (%). UNICEF, 2019 edition, data for 2019.
Published values in that edition run from 31.9 to 100; higher is better.
Position 1st of 86 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Maternal Mortality RatioMMEIG · 2023 · world median 46.654.5246.65▲ Improved since 2013
Turkmenistan: 4.52 · world median 46.65 · Maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. UN Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group (MMEIG), 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 0.11 to 992.83; lower is better.
Position 172nd of 195 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Child MarriageUNICEF · 2025 · world median 17.16.117.1No earlier reading
Turkmenistan: 6.1 · world median 17.1 · Women 20–24 married before 18 (%). UNICEF, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0 to 76.3; lower is better.
Position 112th of 143 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Behind the world median1
Statistics on which Turkmenistan does worse than the middle country measured.
Female Labour Force Participation RateILO · 2025 · world median 53.3638.2453.36▼ Worsened since 2015
Turkmenistan: 38.24 · world median 53.36 · Women aged 15+ in the labour force (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 4.663 to 82.91; higher is better.
Position 155th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No better end1
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
Sex Ratio at BirthUN DESA Population Division · 2023 · world median 105.1106.7105.1Moved since 2013
Turkmenistan: 106.7 · world median 105.1 · Male births per 100 female births. UN DESA Population Division, 2023 edition, data for 2023.
Published values in that edition run from 101.1 to 116.3.
No current reading for Turkmenistan
Female Genital Mutilation Prevalence, Female Share of Researchers, Female Share of Senior and Middle Management, Gender Development Index, Gender Inequality Index, Gender Social Norms Index, Social Institutions and Gender Index and Women, Business and the Law. Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
05Country Index 2026
Gender & Equality among Turkmenistan’s 14 topics
Gender & Equality is Turkmenistan’s 10th best-placed topic of 14. Strongest first; each marker sits at the position divided by that topic’s field, so fields of different sizes compare fairly.
- Risk & Resilience45th of 1923/3 keys
- Education & Knowledge51st of 1714/4 keys
- Development & Human Capitaljoint 72nd of 1963/3 keys
- Peace & Security80th of 1773/4 keys
- Food & Agriculture87th of 1753/4 keys
- Health & Wellbeing123rd of 2003/4 keys
- Work & Labour123rd of 1824/4 keys
- Economy & Innovation130th of 1763/4 keys
- Digital & Technology180th of 1982/3 keys
- Gender & Equality172nd of 1832/4 keys
- Environment & Sustainability173rd of 1813/3 keys
- Democracy & Civil Libertiesjoint 190th of 1983/3 keys
- Governance & Institutions188th of 1944/4 keys
- Energy193rd of 1932/3 keys
No standing on Mobility & Trade, Poverty & Inequality: too few of those topics’ key statistics are published for this country.
06The top of the list
Who leads on gender & equality
The three countries placed highest of 183, and the leaders Turkmenistan can most readily be measured against.
1Latvia
Northern Europe
1st of 183 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Marcin Szala · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
2Taiwan
Eastern Asia
2nd of 183 · 3 of 4 keys
Photo: xiangyang17 · CC BY-SA 2.0, greyscale
3Italy
Southern Europe
3rd of 183 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Francisco Antunes · CC BY 2.0, greyscale
Placed highest nearby
Highest in Asia
Taiwan2nd3/4 keys
Highest in Central Asia
Kazakhstan=90th4/4 keys
This page
Turkmenistan172nd2/4 keys
Positions out of 183 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.
07Questions
Turkmenistan on gender & equality: questions answered
Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.
How does Turkmenistan rank on gender & equality?
Turkmenistan is placed 172nd of 183 countries on Gender & Equality in the Country Index 2026, from 2 of its 4 key statistics (Women's Political Empowerment Index and Firms with a Female Top Manager). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest Women's Political Empowerment Index figure for Turkmenistan?
0.437 in 2025 (women's political empowerment index (0–1)), according to V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg. The world median in the same edition was 0.772.
What is the latest Firms with a Female Top Manager figure for Turkmenistan?
6.084 in 2025 (firms with a female top manager (%)), according to World Bank Group. The world median in the same edition was 19.16.
How does Turkmenistan compare with Iran on gender & equality?
Iran is placed 181st of 183, and Turkmenistan 172nd. Women's Political Empowerment Index: Iran 0.32, Turkmenistan 0.437.
How have Turkmenistan’s gender & equality figures changed?
Women's Political Empowerment Index rose from 0.373 in 2000 to 0.437 in 2025.
Which gender & equality statistics are missing for Turkmenistan?
No current reading is published for Turkmenistan on Female Genital Mutilation Prevalence, Female Share of Researchers, Female Share of Senior and Middle Management, Gender Development Index, Gender Inequality Index, Gender Social Norms Index, Social Institutions and Gender Index and Women, Business and the Law. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
08Keep reading
Explore further
Turkmenistan, topic by topic
- Governance & Institutions188th of 194
- Economy & Innovation130th of 176
- Work & Labour123rd of 182
- Education & Knowledge51st of 171
- Health & Wellbeing123rd of 200
- Development & Human Capital=72nd of 196
- Environment & Sustainability173rd of 181
- Democracy & Civil Liberties=190th of 198
- Peace & Security80th of 177
- Risk & Resilience45th of 192
- Food & Agriculture87th of 175
- Energy193rd of 193
- Digital & Technology180th of 198
- The full Turkmenistan profile
Nearby, on gender & equality
The key statistics, for every country
09Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Violence against women is not a key here, because comparable data covers too few countries. The Gender Inequality Index is published here as context rather than as a key: its reading is driven largely by maternal and adolescent health, which moves with a country’s overall development and is already measured under Development and Health. Women’s labour force participation, women in management and child marriage are published here as context too.
How the Gender & Equality standing is decided, step by step
A standing is a place in a list, not a mark out of anything. This one is part of the Country Index 2026, and it is worked out like this.
- A few key indicators decide it; the rest are context. 4 indicators on this topic are keys and 11 are charted alongside them without a vote. That split is the point: if every statistic voted, importing five more of one kind would quietly change what the topic is about.
- Each key is read at one edition. ⚠ The keys behind this standing do not all describe the same year — they run from 2023 to 2025, because publishers release on their own schedules. Read the standing as “how this country places now”, not as a snapshot of one year.
- Every country’s published value is turned into a place within that one key’s own field, and then expressed as a share of that field — how far down this key’s list the country sits, rather than how many countries are above it. Keys where a higher published number is worse (terrorism, hunger, disaster risk) are turned round first, so the good end is always the same end.
- Dividing by the field first is the whole reason this works. A place carries the size of its list inside it: 22nd of 44 and 108th of 215 are the same showing, and averaging the numbers 22 and 108 says loudly that they are not. Fields on this site run from about 44 countries to about 215, so averaging raw places would reward a country for happening to be measured in small ones. Dividing each place by its own field removes the size and leaves only the showing.
- The shares are averaged, plainly. One key, one vote — no key is weighted above another, because any weighting would be this site’s opinion presented as a measurement. Countries are then put in order by that average, and the average itself is never published. It is our arithmetic with nothing anchoring it, so printing it would invite it to be read as a measurement somebody made. The position it produces, the band, and the keys it was built from are all published instead — every one of them checkable against the tables on this page.
- A country needs 2 of this topic’s 4 keys — half, rounded up, and never fewer than 2. A standing built from one reading, printed beside one built from four, is two different things sharing a column heading. 183 countries clear the bar here.
- A key has to earn its vote every edition. It must measure at least 120 countries (below that it starts measuring who was surveyed rather than the world), it must not have more than 10% of its field tied at either end, and it must not repeat another key in the same topic — Spearman correlation above 0.92 counts as repeating. A topic needs at least 2 surviving keys to place anyone at all; this one has 4.
- A standing is relative, and the grouping is ours. It says where a country places against the others measured alongside it, so it moves when they move. The publishers listed on this page did not agree to be read together, and each measures its subject its own way: the underlying numbers are theirs, the ordering on top is this site’s — the same method as the rest of the Country Index, applied to one subject instead of all of them.
The key statistics and their licences
- Women, Business and the Law — World Bank Group, CC BY 4.0
- Women's Political Empowerment Index — V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Firms with a Female Top Manager — World Bank Group, CC BY 4.0
- Social Institutions and Gender Index — OECD, OECD Terms and Conditions — data clause
The other 5 statistics on this page come from 4 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.
The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photographs
Turkmenistan’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Turkmenistan (banner) — Rastapopulous, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Latvia — Marcin Szala, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Taiwan — xiangyang17, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Italy — Francisco Antunes, CC BY 2.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Turkmenistan: Gender & Equality — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/turkmenistan/gender