Gender in Japan: why does the gap remain so wide?

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The gender gap in Japanese society remains extremely wide by international standards. Japan currently ranks 125th out of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Index. Why does Japan continue to perform poorly when it comes to gender equality? In this presentation, I will tackle that question by looking at three key themes: work, family and education. For Japanese society to become not only more inclusive, but more innovative, it is essential to reduce the existing gender gap. Only through cooperation and forward-thinking in the areas discussed can we help to address that imbalance.

Sawako SHIRAHASE
Professor, Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology, University of Tokyo

Sawako Shirahase is a professor of sociology at Tokyo University’s Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology. She is also director of the university’s Center for Contemporary Japanese Studies (TCJS). Prof. Shirahase earned a DPhil (PhD in Sociology) from the University of Oxford where she specialized in social stratification, sociology of population, family change, and social security. She is a leading expert in her field and has led largescale research projects, including national surveys, into each topic area. Her recent publications include Social Stratification in an Aging Society with Low Fertility (ed., Springer, 2022), « Social Stratification Theory and Population Aging Reconsidered » (Japan Journal of Social Sciences, 2021), and The Structure of Social Stratification in an Aging Society with Low Fertility 1-3 (ed., Japanese only, University of Tokyo Press, 2021).

Moderator: Raphaël LANGUILLON-AUSSEL (FRIJ-MFJ)
Organization: FRIJ-MFJ
Co-organization: CCI France Japon
Support: French Embassy in Japan