Only 13 female CEOs among top 1,600 companies in Japan, reveals survey
Japan
Japan has only 13 female Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) across approximately 1,600 top-listed companies in the country, a survey by Tokyo-based Kyodo News revealed.
The survey highlights that the Asian country is still struggling to increase diversity among its corporate decision-makers.
According to the survey, women lead just 0.8 per cent of the 1643 firms listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's top-tier prime market. The data is based on investigations of fiscal 2023 financial statements released by the end of August.
The declining number also underlines the uphill struggle Japan's government faces in reaching its target of having women in at least 30 per cent of executive roles by the end of the decade.
Ryusuke Ishii, a manager at the Japan Research Institute, said that the lack of progress in appointing female CEOs is due partly to the hiring of top officers from outside businesses rather than promoting internally.
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Even after former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) that he would "create a society in which all women shine", the country continues to be low in international gender comparisons of politics and business.
The research further highlighted that the number of female board members exceeded 3,000, doubling from fiscal 2019. It underscores that Japanese companies have been progressing in promoting women to top roles.
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Apart from the 29 firms that have been listed at the market's top tier for less than five years, the number of female CEOs at 1,614 Prime Market companies remained at between seven and nine for three years through fiscal 2022.
To further increase the number of female executives in the sector, the Japanese government has asked top-listed firms to raise the proportion of female executives to 30 per cent or more by 2030.
Last year, the figure increased to 16.2 per cent or 3,052 women, up from 1,502 in fiscal 2019.
(With inputs from agencies)