Denmark Tops, Afghanistan Last! Where Do India and US Rank in Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26?

The Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26 has once again highlighted the global condition of women’s rights and safety. According to the latest report, nearly 676 million women were exposed to conflict in the past year a 74% rise since 2010. The index ranks 181 countries based on women’s inclusion, justice, and security. While Denmark retains the top position, Afghanistan ranks at the bottom in the Index List.

What is the Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26?

• The Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26 is published by the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and the Peace Research Institute Oslo.
• The WPS Index 2025 measures women’s well-being across three key dimensions  inclusion (economic and political participation), justice (legal equality and discrimination) and security (freedom from violence and conflict).
• Each country is given a score between 0 and 1, where higher scores reflect better conditions for women.
• The index is important for policymakers and competitive exam aspirants because it gives a clear global comparison of women’s status and progress.

Top 10 Best Countries in Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26

In the Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26, Denmark ranks first for the third consecutive time with a score of 0.939. It is followed by Iceland and Norway. Notably, five Nordic countries are in the top five, showing strong social welfare systems and gender equality policies.

Top 10 Countries (WPS Index 2025)

1. Denmark – 0.939
2. Iceland – 0.932
3. Norway – 0.924
4. Sweden – 0.924
5. Finland – 0.921
6. Luxembourg – 0.918
7. Belgium – 0.912
8. Netherlands – 0.905
9. Austria – 0.898
10. Australia – 0.898

These nations perform strongly in women’s employment, parliamentary representation, legal rights, and low levels of violence.

Top 10 Worst Countries in Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26

At the bottom of the Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26 is Afghanistan with a score of 0.279. Most of the bottom 10 countries are affected by armed conflict, fragile governance, or humanitarian crises.

Bottom 10 Countries (WPS Index 2025)

• 181st Afghanistan – 0.279
• 180th Yemen – 0.323
• 179th Central African Republic – 0.362
• 178th Syria – 0.364
• 177th Sudan – 0.397
• 176th Haiti – 0.399
• 175th DR Congo – 0.405
• 174th Burundi – 0.407
• 173th South Sudan – 0.411
• 172nd Myanmar – 0.442

Nine out of these ten are classified as fragile or conflict-affected states, showing how instability directly affects women’s safety and rights.

Where Do India and the US Stand in Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26?

• In the Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26, India ranks 131st with a score of 0.607.
• This shows steady but uneven progress in women’s inclusion and safety.
• India has improved in areas like financial inclusion and maternal health but still faces challenges such as gender-based violence and low female workforce participation.
• The United States ranks 31st, moving up six places from last year.
• The improvement is mainly due to a decline in maternal mortality rates after nearly two decades. However, the US still faces challenges related to violence and gender inequality.

Regional Trends and Key Findings

• The Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26 highlights that global progress has largely stagnated between 2017/18 and 2025/26.
• East Asia and the Pacific show gradual improvement, while many developed countries show signs of slowing progress.
• Interestingly, some conflict-affected nations in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East recorded improvements.
• Out of the top 10 most improved countries, five are from Sub-Saharan Africa and four from the Middle East and North Africa.
• This indicates that targeted reforms and international support can bring positive change even in fragile states.

About Women, Peace and Security Index

• The Women, Peace and Security Index was first launched in 2017.
• It is published every two years.
• The index covers 181 countries and measures women’s status using 13 indicators across inclusion, justice, and security.
• It is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security.

Question

Which country ranks first in the Women, Peace and Security Index 2025/26?

A) Iceland
B) Norway
C) Denmark
D) Sweden