The United Nations has focused the theme of this year's International Women's Day on "Investing in Women: Accelerating Progress", which is a profound and urgent setting. Given that women make up half of the global population, only by fully empowering them can we effectively address the numerous challenges of the contemporary world. Among them, improving women's labor force participation rate and ensuring gender balance in leadership are the two key factors in narrowing the gender gap and stimulating economic vitality.

Currently, the global female labor force participation rate lags behind that of men, not because women lack productivity, but because a large number of women are engaged in informal work that is not economically recognized, such as household chores and caregiving, whose value is difficult to quantify and integrate into economic statistics. Improving women's labor force participation rate is not only a necessary path to realizing women's rights, but also an effective strategy to alleviate labor shortages and promote economic growth.

Taking India as an example, as the country with the lowest female labor force participation rate and the largest population in Asia, if women can be effectively mobilized to join the workforce, its economic growth potential will be immeasurable. However, the realization of this vision relies on the improvement and support of infrastructure such as childcare services and safety guarantees. On the other hand, although Japan has a leading labor force participation rate, improving the quality of its workforce remains its top priority. The promotion of corporate governance reform is expected to open up broader space for female leaders, thereby enhancing organizational efficiency and economic benefits.

From the Seneca Falls Conference in New York in 1848, which pioneered the women's rights movement, to the birth of the first female head of state or government of eight countries in 2021, although the path of women's development has gone through many obstacles, it has also achieved remarkable results. However, challenges such as the COVID-19 epidemic once again highlighted the urgency of gender equality. Therefore, the United Nations has set the theme of this year's Women's Day as "Investing in Women: Accelerating Progress", which is necessary for the times and calls for global efforts to create a more equitable development environment for women.

Women's economic empowerment is not only related to the realization of women's rights and gender equality, but also a powerful driving force for economic growth. With the decrease of working age population in many countries around the world, the increase of female labor force plays an irreplaceable role in maintaining the stability of the public pension system and filling the labor gap. The research of the International Monetary Fund further confirms that women's economic empowerment can enhance productivity, promote economic diversification and income equality, and bring significant positive effects to the global economy.

In this context, which countries and regions have significant GDP growth potential by increasing women's labor force participation rates? Does a low female labor force participation rate mean that they are enjoying comfort rather than taking responsibility? These issues will be discussed in depth in subsequent chapters. It cannot be ignored that although women make up half of the global population, according to LinkedIn data, they will only account for 41.9% of the labor force in 2023, and a large number of women are still excluded from the formal economic system. In addition, the gender gap in unpaid nursing work has further intensified during the pandemic, highlighting the persistence of gender role stereotypes and the urgency of change.