Why call it ‘equality’ when it should be ‘achievement’? A proposal to un-correct the ‘corrected gender gaps’ in the EU Gender Equality Index

Abstract

This study critically reviews the new Gender Equality Index (GEI) proposed by the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) in 2013, arguing that the way in which it has been defined can be misleading for its potential users. The GEI is defined to ensure that good scores in the index are reflective of both low gender gaps and high levels of overall achievement. The study finds that the GEI values are largely driven by differences in overall achievement levels between countries rather than by gender differences within them, a disturbing issue that unduly penalizes low-income countries for factors that are not related to gender norms or discriminatory practices and which might lead to the elaboration of ill-targeted policies. In order to overcome this problem, we introduce a new version of the GEI that gets rid of its achievement component and which is much simpler to interpret.