Where are the female CEOs, Japan?

A survey by the Kyodo news agency found that there are just 13 CEOs who are women in the top 1600 companies in Japan (0.8%).

Another survey in 2022 found that 15.5% of executive positions (managers who run part or a section of a company) were women. For comparison, it is 40.9% in the UK and 45.2% in France. Only China and Korea have less women who are in executive positions than Japan. Shinzo Abe told the UN in 2014 he wanted to "create a society [for] all women [to] shine".

There have been some positive progress, such as Mitsuko Tottori, but the numbers are still very low. Tottori became the first female president or Japan Airlines in January 2024. Also, Tomoko Yoshino became the leader of RENGO in 2021.

The low numbers show how big the problem is. It might take a long time to change and shows how difficult it is for women who want to work at the top. Especially in Japan…

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survey: 調査、アンケート

in the top 1600 companies: 上位 1600 社

another: 別の

for comparison: 比較、比較的、割に

the UN: 国連

create: 創造する

society: 社会

to shine: 輝く

low: 低い