The selection of Sanae Takaichi as Japan’s 104th prime minister is remarkable in many respects, but none more so than it shatters the glass ceiling for women in Nagatacho’s upper echelons of power. At the same time, her appointment may prove to be a “glass cliff” — a historic opportunity fraught with risk.
Takaichi has become the first female prime minister in a country where women hold less than 16% of the seats in the Lower House of parliament. Across Japanese society, examples of women in top leadership remain rare, whether as chief executives of major firms or presidents of leading universities.
In last year’s World Economic Forum Gender Gap Index, Japan ranked 118th out of 146 countries, with the largest shortfall in political empowerment — even though women achieve parity in health and education outcomes. The old boys’ network of clientelist politics, particularly within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, continues to create structural and social barriers to women’s advancement.
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