China has world’s most skewed sex ratio at birth – again
World Economic Forum report also finds the mainland performs poorly in women’s education and political power
The mainland has recorded the world’s most imbalanced sex ratio at birth for the second consecutive year, and the country has slipped in its ranking for overall gender equality, a report shows.
The study by the World Economic Forum also pointed to the risks a country faced if a serious sex imbalance was combined with a rapidly ageing population.
The “Global Gender Gap Report” measures gaps between women and men in health, education, economic participation and opportunity, and political empowerment.
On the mainland, a traditional preference for boys has encouraged selective abortions that resulted in 115 boys born for every 100 girls from 1994.
It peaked nationally in 2004 with 121.2 boys born for every 100 girls, and some provinces have seen the ratio climb as high as 130. But the figure has been falling for the last seven years and stood at 113.5 last year.