Turkey occupies a crossroads between Europe and Asia, a geographic position that has long made it a meeting point of cultures, economies, and ideas. Yet when it comes to gender equality in education, Turkey continues to lag behind. Girls in Turkey still have less access to education than boys and suffer from extreme economic inequality even when they do attain an education. It is vital that this situation be improved and that girls and women in Turkey get to have the same opportunities that their male counterparts do.

A Country at the Bottom of the Gender Gap Rankings

According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2024, Turkey is among the most unequal countries in the world in terms of gender. With only 64.5% of its gender gap closed, Turkey was ranked 127th out of 146 countries included in the report and was the most unequal country in Europe, having closed 29% less of the gender gap than Iceland, Europe’s most equal country. While Turkey ranks a bit better in terms of the gender gap in educational attainment (90th out of 146 countries), it has only closed just over 50% of the gender gap in economic participation and opportunity, and sinks below 50% in terms of labor-force participation, the only country in Europe to do so. Thus, it is clear that Turkey has much work to do in educating girls and ensuring that such education translates into economic well-being.

Inequality in Education and Economic Opportunity

In Turkey, girls face lower rates of education than boys and extremely low rates of employment and economic opportunity. Out of Turkey’s population of age 25 or older in 2023, 96.8% of men had completed one or more education level, while only 87.7% of women had done so. Within the same population, 5.4% of women were illiterate versus 0.8% of men, and over a quarter (26.4%) of women had only completed primary school, versus 17.4% of men.

The gender gap in the economy is even more stark. As of 2023, among people in Turkey over 15 years old, only 31.3% of women have employment, whereas 65.7% of men have employment. This trend actually gets worse as a woman’s level of education gets higher. Women who have completed high school have twice the unemployment rate of those who have not, and these women’s unemployment rate is twice that of men who have completed high school. Further, the gender pay gap increases with education level, going from 13.2% for those with a primary education or less to 17.4% for those with higher education. Thus, it is clear not only that women are less educated than men in Turkey, but also that even women who are educated have a far more difficult time converting their education into economic success.

Addressing Girls’ Access to Education and Opportunity in Turkey

The Koruncuk Foundation and Allianz, an insurance and asset management company, opened a new dormitory for girls in danger of not continuing their education. Opened on June 9, 2026, the dormitory aims to provide girls with a safe home from which they can continue their education. Yet while non-governmental organizations like the Koruncuk Foundation may work to improve girls’ education, it is vital that the government of Turkey also take drastic measures to better girls’ education and their economic opportunities thereafter.

– Madison Shea Lamanna, Jackson Mayer
Photo: Flickr