About the data
The WBA Gender Benchmark measures and ranks the world's most influential companies on their efforts to advance gender equality and women's empowerment, tracking how companies integrate gender across their governance and strategy, promote fair representation at all levels of leadership, close the gender pay gap, support workers' health and well-being, prevent violence and harassment, and drive gender equality through their supply chains and communities. The 2026 edition assessed 105 companies across two sectors identified as having a particularly significant impact on gender equality: apparel, and food and agriculture. Companies were scored on 91 elements across six measurement areas: governance and strategy, representation, compensation and benefits, health and well-being, violence and harassment, and marketplace and community. The benchmark is designed to incentivise companies to move beyond policy commitments and take concrete, measurable action to respect and promote gender equality throughout their full value chains, keeping women workers' rights and human rights at its core. More information can be found here.
Methodology
A company committed to gender equality acknowledges that women entrepreneurs face
disproportionate barriers to market access globally. It actively procures from women-owned
businesses and has taken specific actions to increase its procurement spend on them to provide
greater market access to and economic inclusion of women entrepreneurs who disproportionately
lack this access due to social norms that limit their access to information and networking
opportunities. This can confer benefits on the company, including a more diversified supplier base
and increased market competition among suppliers.
Research Guidance
The company has made a public commitment to gender-responsive procurement. This does not need to be a high-level policy commitment and therefore it is accepted if this public commitment is found in a webpage or in a company report.
For this indicator, we accept evidence of implementation in specific location/subsidiary.
disproportionate barriers to market access globally. It actively procures from women-owned
businesses and has taken specific actions to increase its procurement spend on them to provide
greater market access to and economic inclusion of women entrepreneurs who disproportionately
lack this access due to social norms that limit their access to information and networking
opportunities. This can confer benefits on the company, including a more diversified supplier base
and increased market competition among suppliers.
Research Guidance
The company has made a public commitment to gender-responsive procurement. This does not need to be a high-level policy commitment and therefore it is accepted if this public commitment is found in a webpage or in a company report.
For this indicator, we accept evidence of implementation in specific location/subsidiary.
License
Topics
Framework Mappings
Value Type
Category
Options
Yes
No
Assessment
Steward Assessed
Report Type
Aggregate Data Report