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Every item on this page was chosen by a Town & Country editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.

In these communities around the globe, women oversee everything from politics, economics, and the broader social structure.

If you look far enough back into history, you'll find that women were revered and honored for their ability to bear children. Even if you just crack open a Greek epic, the pages are teeming with goddesses and female warriors, elevated to a position of worship and respect.

But over the course of history, societies across the globe started to bend towards a more patriarchal structure, which is pervasive in most communities in modern times. However, there are still surviving matriarchal societies to be found where women, literally, are the dominant steering factor in all matters, social, political, and economical. Read up on how these six individual communities across the globe and how they have diverged from the western-patriarchal architecture that is pervasive throughout most of the world.

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The Mosuo women are China's last surviving matriarchy. There are about 40,000 of them, according to The Independent, and they practice Tibetan Buddhism. Lineage is traced through the women of the family. This society is also matrilineal, meaning property is handed down the same female line. Mosuo women also don't marry. Should they choose to have a partner, the two don't live together and the mother plays the primary role in raising the children.

The BriBri people are an indigenous tribe with an estimated 12,000-35,000 members. In this society, land is handed down from the mother to her children. Women are revered and thus are the only people who can prepare the sacred cacao drink for their religious rituals.

The Umoja tribe is a true-blue No Mans Land, because men are banned. This village is a home to women who have experienced sexual or gender-based violence. The Umoja village, which means "unity" in Swahili, was founded in 1990. As occupations, the women and children show tourists their village and work to educate others about their rights.

The Minangkabau people are a part of the largest surviving matriarchal society encompassing approximately four million people as of 2017. The common belief in this culture is that the mother is the most important person in society. Women rule the domestic realm of life. And while marriage is feasible in the Minangkabau society, partners must have separate sleeping quarters.

According to Mental Floss, the social organization of the Akan people is built around the matriclan. Within the matriclan, identity, inheritance, wealth, and politics are all decided. As the name would have it, matriclan founders are female. However, it must be noted that with in the Akan Matriclan, men do hold leadership positions.

As of 2011, this matriarchal society was comprised of about 1 million. Mothers and mothers-in-law are the only people allowed to look after children and, according to The Guardian, men aren't even entitled to attend family gatherings. What's more, when women marry in the Khasi tribe, their surname is passed down instead that of their husbands.

Sarah Madaus Sarah Madaus is the digital editorial fellow at Town & Country.

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These Matriarchal Societies Are Entirely Governed by Women

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Every item on this page was chosen by a Town & Country editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. In these communities around the globe, women oversee everything from politics, economics, and the broader social structure.

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Friday's shooting at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texasseems bound to kick off another national conversation about gun control. There will almost certainly be more debate about whether it would even be possible for the US to limit its millions of privately held guns, by far a higher per capita gun ownership rate than any other country.

It is worth considering, as one data point in the pool of evidence about what sorts of gun control policies do and do not work, the experience of Australia. Between October 1996 and September 1997, Australia responded to its own gun violence problem with a solution that was both straightforward and severe: It collected roughly 650,000 privately held guns. It was one of the largest mandatory gun buyback programs in recent history.

And it worked. That does not mean that something even remotely similar would work in the US - they are, needless to say, different countries - but it is worth at least looking at their experience.

What Australia did

On April 28, 1996, a 28-year-old man with a troubled past named Martin Bryant walked into a cafe in Port Arthur, a tourist town on the island of Tasmania, and opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle. He killed 35 people and wounded another 28.

Australia's prime minister at the time, John Howard, had taken office just six weeks earlier at the head of a center-right coalition. He quickly drew a very clear conclusion from the Port Arthur killing: Australia had too many guns, and they were too easy to get.

"I knew that I had to use the authority of my office to curb the possession and use of the type of weapons that killed 35 innocent people," Howard wrote in a 2013 op-ed for the New York Times. "I also knew it wouldn't be easy."

Howard persuaded both his coalition and Australia's states (the country has a federal system) to agree to a sweeping, nationwide reform of gun laws. The so-called National Firearms Agreement (NFA), drafted the month after the shooting, sharply restricted legal ownership of firearms in Australia. It also established a registry of all guns owned in the country, among other measures, and required a permit for all new firearm purchases.

One of the most significant provisions of the NFA was a flat-out ban on certain kinds of guns, such as automatic and semi-automatic rifles and shotguns. But there were already a number of such guns in circulation in Australia, and the NFA required getting them off the streets.

Australia solved this problem by introducing a mandatory buyback: Australia's states would take away all guns that had just been declared illegal. In exchange, they'd pay the guns' owners a fair price, set by a national committee using market value as a benchmark, to compensate for the loss of their property. The NFA also offered legal amnesty for anyone who handed in illegally owned guns, though they weren't compensated.

There were fears that the mandatory buyback would provoke resistance: During one address to a crowd of guns rights supporters, Howard wore a bulletproof vest. Thankfully, fears of violence turned out to be unfounded. About 650,000 legally owned guns were peacefully seized, then destroyed, as part of the buyback.

According to one academic estimate, the buyback took in and destroyed 20 percent of all privately owned guns in Australia. Analysis of import data suggests that Australians haven't purchased nearly enough guns in the past 18 years to make up for the initial decline.

Australia's program saved a lot of lives

In 2011, Harvard's David Hemenway and Mary Vriniotis reviewed the research on Australia's suicide and homicide rate after the NFA. Their conclusion was clear: "The NFA seems to have been incredibly successful in terms of lives saved."

What they found is a decline in both suicide and homicide rates after the NFA. The average firearm suicide rate in Australia in the seven years after the bill declined by 57 percent compared with the seven years prior. The average firearm homicide rate went down by about 42 percent.

Now, Australia's homicide rate was already declining before the NFA was implemented, so you can't attribute all of the drops to the new laws. But there's good reason to believe the NFA, especially the buyback provisions, mattered a great deal in contributing to those declines.

"First," Hemenway and Vriniotis write, "the drop in firearm deaths was largest among the type of firearms most affected by the buyback. Second, firearm deaths in states with higher buyback rates per capita fell proportionately more than in states with lower buyback rates."

There is also this: 1996 and 1997, the two years in which the NFA was actually implemented, saw the largest percentage declines in the homicide rate in any two-year period in Australia between 1915 and 2004.

Pinning down exactly how much the NFA contributed is harder. One study concluded that buying back 3,500 guns per 100,000 people correlated with up to a 50 percent drop in firearm homicides. But as my colleague Dylan Matthews points out, the results were not statistically significant because Australia has a pretty low number of murders already.

However, the paper's findings about suicide were statistically significant - and astounding. Buying back 3,500 guns correlated with a 74 percent drop in firearm suicides. Non-gun suicides didn't increase to make up the decline.

There is good reason why gun restrictions would prevent suicides. As Matthews explains in great depth, suicide is often an impulsive choice, one often not repeated after a first attempt. Guns are specifically designed for killing, which makes suicide attempts with guns likelier to succeed than (for example) attempts with razors or pills. Limiting access to guns makes each attempt more likely to fail, thus making it more likely that people will survive and not attempt to harm themselves again.

The buyback also may have reduced the rate of mass shootings. A 2018 study found that, in the 18 years before Port Arthur, Australia experienced 13 mass shootings; in the 22 years since, the country has only suffered one such incident.

Bottom line: Australia's gun buyback saved lives, probably by reducing homicides and almost certainly by reducing suicides. Again, Australian lessons might not necessarily apply to the US, given the many cultural and political differences between the two countries. But in thinking about gun violence and how to limit it, this seems like a worthwhile thing to look at. If you're looking for lessons about gun control, this is a pretty important one.

Watch: 18 charts that explain gun violence in America

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Australia confiscated 650,000 guns. Murders and suicides plummeted.

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Friday's shooting at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texasseems bound to kick off another national conversation about gun control. There will almost certainly be more debate about whether it would even be possible for the US to limit its millions of privately held guns, by far a higher per capita gun ownership rate than any other country.

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Millions of Women Are Still Denied Equal Citizenship Rights - Here's Why It Matters

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Millions of Women Are Still Denied Equal Citizenship Rights - Here's Why It Matters

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The author, the Global Lead on Legal Equality and Access to Justice at advocacy group Equality Now, argues that discriminatory nationality laws denying women equal citizenship rights are a fundamental barrier to achieving gender equality and must be urgently reformed...

The world is failing women and girls.

With just five years left to accomplish the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), not a single country is on track to meet SDG 5: achieving gender equality. Governments cite excuses such as budget constraints or political instability, but a leading cause is the injustice that remains embedded in legal systems, including sexist nationality laws that treat women as second-class citizens.
UN Member States recommit to gender equality, but words are not enough
While this renewed commitment is welcome, words are not enough. Meaningful change demands concrete action, and reform of nationality laws is one of the most practical, impactful steps countries can take.
Discriminatory nationality laws harm families and countries
Discriminatory nationality laws harm millions of women and their families. They fuel statelessness, restrict movement, and make it harder for women to obtain birth certificates for their children or claim child custody. Confronted with these prospects, women are effectively restricted in who they can marry and are also more likely to stay in abusive relationships. In some cases, girls are forced to marry to gain the security of citizenship.

Affected families face legal limbo. Adults are excluded from formal employment, which perpetuates intergenerational poverty and inequality. People without full citizenship can struggle to access public services such as healthcare and social welfare benefits, and in some countries, inheriting or registering personal property is disallowed. Children can be excluded from state schools, severely limiting future job opportunities and life chances.

Some countries still force women to adopt the nationality of their husbands when they wed. Men are not obliged to do the same. In the event of a divorce or a spouse's death, some states strip a woman of her new nationality, rendering her, and in some cases her children, stateless.

Discriminatory laws also deny men their rights. A man who can't take his wife's nationality might be forced to live away from his children, or be denied the right to work.

The harms extend beyond households. Discriminatory nationality laws weaken labor markets, reduce productivity, and hinder sustainable development.
Sexism and xenophobia underpin discriminatory nationality rights
Regressive arguments against legal reform come with more than a whiff of sexism and xenophobia. Unequal nationality laws tether a woman's legal identity to her husband or father. This curtails her autonomy, reinforces harmful gender stereotypes, and is premised upon archaic beliefs that a woman's identity and legal rights should depend on male family members.

Politicians frequently justify not rectifying nationality laws by invoking concerns about economic or state security, claiming sex discriminatory restrictions are necessary to "protect" a country from outsiders and that granting women equal nationality rights risks undermining national identity and stability.
Progress on advancing equality in nationality laws
Ending discrimination in nationality laws is a legal requirement under international law and various human rights treaties. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, for example, states that everyone has the right to a nationality. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) specifies that women should have the same rights as men to acquire, change, or retain their nationalities and pass them on to their children, which has been extended to spouses as well.

Since then, Liberia passed amendments to their Alien and Nationality Law, ensuring women and men's equal rights to confer nationality on their children. Benin also reformed its nationality law so there is now complete equality. And recently, Malaysia's parliament passed an amendment to its constitution allowing women to confer their nationality to children born outside the country on the same basis as men.

Good news. But it's not nearly enough.
Reforming nationality laws is key to SDG 5
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development promises to "leave no one behind." Yet women and their families are being left behind by discrimination in the law that prevents them and their families from fully belonging in their own countries.

Governments have no excuse for inaction. The tools exist now.

At the 2025 HLPF, Equality Now and the Global Campaign for Equal Nationality Rights shared practical guidelines to reform nationality laws , providing policymakers with rights-based solutions and model legal language grounded in international law, and developed in collaboration with UN experts.

The aim is clear: to guarantee that all citizens, regardless of gender, have equal access to citizenship rights. In some cases, the change needed is as straightforward as replacing the word "father" with "parent" in legal texts, an amendment that may seem minor but would transform many lives.

Countries must urgently review their nationality laws, eliminate gender-based discrimination, and recommit to full gender equality. Because without equal nationality rights, SDG 5-and the entire 2030 Agenda-will remain an empty promise.
Antonia Kirkland is the Global Lead on Legal Equality and Access to Justice at advocacy group Equality Now.

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Millions of Women Are Still Denied Equal Citizenship Rights - Here's Why It Matters

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The world is failing women and girls. With just five years left to accomplish the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), not a single country is on track to meet SDG 5: achieving gender...

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Invisible inequality: Why property, power remain out of women’s reach

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Invisible inequality: Why property, power remain out of women’s reach

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Highlights

Women's land ownership claims often disregarded

Only 4% landowners, majority still excluded

Denying women property is denying them power

Without property, protection remains elusive

Inheritance laws reinforce deep-rooted inequality

Violence tied to land ownership

Shalish overrides courts, justice denied

Girls married young, denied inheritance

Reserved seats in Jatiya Sangshad inflate political inclusion

Digital divide reinforces gender inequality

Yet this crisis remains absent from national policy agendas

In Bangladesh today, women's rights exist as a painful paradox: they are enshrined in speeches, policies, and global indices - yet routinely denied in law, in culture, and in the lived experience of millions.

It is easy to point to women powering the garment sector, leading ministries, or topping literacy charts. But these visible achievements often obscure a more brutal and invisible truth: most Bangladeshi women still do not own anything - not land, not wealth, not even decisions over their own bodies. And because they own nothing, they are routinely denied everything.

According to Dr Mariha Tahsin, a policy analyst and visiting research fellow at the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD), property rights are perhaps the most urgent and yet most overlooked issue facing women today. Public discussion on the subject rarely goes beyond the unequal inheritance laws that grant daughters only half the share of sons. But the inequity runs far deeper.

"What happens to a woman's claim to her husband's property?" she asks. "Does a divorced woman have the right to remain in her marital home? Can a rural wife till land she has worked on for decades without being evicted by in-laws? More often than not, the answer is no."

Despite constitutional guarantees and a 2025 government commission recommending uniform family laws, women in Bangladesh are still systematically stripped of their claims to property.

Only 4% of landowners are women. Wives are frequently excluded altogether. Widows are pressured to forfeit their inheritance. Divorce rarely results in fair settlements. Informal village shalish systems often override formal legal rights, particularly in rural areas.

In a country where land ownership remains the cornerstone of economic security, mobility, and dignity, Dr Tahsin argues, denying women property is tantamount to denying them power.

"This imbalance has wide-ranging consequences. From business opportunities to bank loans, from divorce settlements to old-age security - a woman without property is a woman without protection."

Badabon Sangho, a women's rights organisation, is working to establish women's rights to land and natural resources.

Mamun Ur Rashid, mentioned that in a study (conducted by Badabon Sangho in 12 districts), "74% of women landowners received land from inheritance, 52.6% of the women face challenges related to land ownership due to a lack of proper information about their land, 33.20% women has been facing at least one type/forms of gender-based violence (GBV) in relation with land ownership, 86% of women don't have land literacy".

He also mentioned that Badabon Sangho has been working with grassroots women to educate them on land documentation so that they can explain their rights and claim it as well. There is both silent and open gender-based violence against women due to land ownership.

It is no coincidence that women remain the most impoverished segment of the population. Property has become the quietest and most efficient way of locking them out of economic life, and yet this crisis remains almost entirely absent from national policy agendas.

But the denial of property feeds into broader cycles of vulnerability. Girls are married off young because families see no value in educating someone who will never inherit. Women remain in abusive marriages because they have nowhere to go. Widows become destitute overnight because they have no fallback assets.

And so, other rights fall like dominoes.

In the workplace, women face wage discrimination and widespread harassment, especially in the garment sector, where four million women sustain the economy but receive little protection in return.

In politics, women's participation remains largely symbolic, confined to reserved seats and a handful of high-profile roles that obscure their marginalisation in real decision-making. Online, men continue to dominate access to digital platforms and resources. In 2025, only 24% of women were active mobile internet users compared to 37% of men.

Violence against women, too, remains widespread and underreported. A 2024-2025 UNFPA-BBS survey found that 70% of Bangladeshi women have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime. Most never tell anyone.

The reasons are predictable: legal aid is weak, police responses are often dismissive, and the courts are slow, expensive, and traumatising. Marital rape, too, remains legal. The average cost of pursuing justice is also insurmountable for most survivors.

And yet, despite this grim reality, an illusion of progress continues to shape public perception. Bangladesh ranked 24th in the 2025 Global Gender Gap Index, a position that appears impressive until closely examined. Political representation is inflated by reserved quotas.

Literacy rates mask the reality of widespread child marriage, still affecting 51% of girls under 18. And while the national gender budget reached a record Tk175,350 crore in FY2023-24, much of it funds conferences and awareness campaigns, not legal reform or grassroots support systems.

Zeenat Ara Haque, a prominent women's rights activist and chief executive officer of We Can, believes that despite the grand rhetoric surrounding women's development in Bangladesh, the grim realities on the ground persist because women's rights are ultimately a political issue.

They are intrinsically tied to the stability of the state and the clarity of its policy commitments. According to her, the overall condition of the Bangladeshi state is reflected in the persistent denial of women's rights.

"We have no coherent strategic plan when it comes to securing women's rights - just like many other key national issues," she said. "Over the years, some positive steps have indeed been taken, but they were mostly scattered and never properly implemented at the grassroots level.

"Meanwhile, token gestures, like appointing women to high-profile posts through quotas, having a female Speaker, a couple of female ministers, or MPs in reserved seats, have created a façade of progress. Behind this façade, the real condition of ordinary women remains dire."

She further noted that even under the current caretaker administration, there is little hope for any real improvement in the situation of women.

"The Women's Reform Commission may have made some ambitious recommendations," she said, "but their implementation seems unlikely. Many within the government itself are opposed to these reforms - they are misogynistic and regressive in their thinking.

"The government, despite knowing this, failed to initiate any consultation or build consensus ahead of the commission's report. And after the report was released, it stayed silent amid the growing controversy. That silence has all but doomed the commission's chances of success," she added.

In a country where laws are shaped by political will and sustained by social consensus, the silence speaks volumes.

Until women's rights are seen not as charity, not as symbolism, but as foundational to the nation's future, the paradox will continue: of progress without power, of inclusion without agency, of women celebrated in theory - and abandoned in life.
This article has been produced in association with Badabon Sangho.

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Invisible inequality: Why property, power remain out of women's reach

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Only 4% of landowners are women. Wives are frequently excluded altogether. Widows are pressured to forfeit their inheritance. Divorce rarely results in fair settlements. Informal village shalish systems often override formal legal rights, particularly in rural areas

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Americas: Regional Conference on Women must act as a safeguard against attacks on gender equality

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Americas: Regional Conference on Women must act as a safeguard against attacks on gender equality

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Americas: Regional Conference on Women must act as a safeguard against attacks on gender equality

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Thirty years after the Beijing Plan, the region faces urgent challenges and an increasingly hostile environment for women’s rights.

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Solving the water and sanitation crisis: How technology and innovation can help

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Solving the water and sanitation crisis: How technology and innovation can help

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UNCTAD examines how to use new technologies to improve existing systems and get safe water and sanitation to all.

© UNDP Lebanon | An extension of the main water supply network reaches Kfar Roummane, a village in southern Lebanon.

This year's World Water Day on 22 March focuses on accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis.

About 2 billion people lack safe drinking water, according to UN-Water, and about 5.4 billion don't have access to safely managed sanitation services.

A recent UNCTAD report emphasizes the role of science, technology and innovation (STI) in tackling this crisis.

It says frontier technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data and Internet of Things help in monitoring water and sanitation infrastructure and accelerate progress towards UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 on "clean water and sanitation for all".

To expand their use, the UN's Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD) will examine how STI can help get safe water and sanitation to the billions of people without these essential services, during its twenty-sixth annual session from 27 to 31 March. UNCTAD provides substantive support to the CSTD.

"Access to safe water and sanitation is a challenge in developing countries," said Shamika N. Sirimanne, UNCTAD's director for technology and logistics and head of the CSTD Secretariat. "Climate change and increased pressure on water, food and energy resources are aggravating the situation."

She said the CSTD will continue serving as the focal point in the UN system for knowledge-sharing, consensus building and securing synergies between UN-wide initiatives to leverage STI for development, including for SDG 6.

New technologies hold great promise

Demand for freshwater is projected to exceed supply by 40% by 2030, putting at risk the achievement of SDG 6 and threatening all SDGs, including those on food security, poverty, gender equality and peace.

Tackling water scarcity due to excess demand and climate change will require a dramatic improvement in how we manage water resources.

"New technologies can be deployed in water infrastructure management," said Sucharit Koontanakulvong, a distinguished scholar in water resources management at Chulalangkorn University in Thailand.

Mr. Koontanakulvong, who will be part of a high-level panel on ensuring safe water and sanitation during the CSTD session, said such technology can boost efforts to combat climate change and achieve SDG 6.

For example, early warning systems that rely on drone technologies or deeply integrated earth observation systems can support disaster threat prediction and mitigation.

And solutions like smart metering, which provide real-time information and customized feedback, can increase the efficiency of existing water and sanitation systems.

Such technologies should be scaled up to accelerate progress towards SDG 6, agree other experts who will speak during the session.

"A combination of open digital tools, capacity-building and the use of international standards and frameworks is fundamental to scaling up efforts towards SDG 6," said Enrique Cabrera, a professor at the Polytechnic University of Valencia in Spain and the vice president of International Water Association.

He said water solutions must be adapted to local conditions, as one size will not fit all.

"Ad-hoc solutions will be needed for each local situation to determine the best use of the latest technologies and how to optimize the use of existing financial resources," Mr. Cabrera said.

Global partnerships critical

Global partnerships are crucial not only to support access to STI but also to enhance knowledge-sharing that fosters the scaling up of good practices domestically and internationally.

Doulaye Kone, deputy director of the water, sanitation and hygiene programme at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, highlights the importance of cooperation among various stakeholders in fast-tracking progress towards SDG 6.

"Over the last decade, new players, inventors and innovators have joined the challenge of solving the sanitation crisis," said Mr. Kone, who will join the panel of experts at the CSTD session.

He said stakeholders from industry, academia and governments in China, India, Senegal and South Africa are pioneering transformative solutions to make sanitation services inclusive and safe for all, especially women and girls.

"By setting clear policies, performance standards for innovative technologies and sanitation service delivery," Mr. Kone said, "countries can drive the adoption of innovation and collaboration that is needed to accelerate progress towards SDG 6."

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Solving the water and sanitation crisis: How technology and innovation can help

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This year's World Water Day on 22 March focuses on accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis. About 2 billion people lack safe drinking water, according to UN-Water, and about 5.4 billion don't have access to safely managed sanitation services.

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Policy Brief: Drought and California’s Agriculture

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Policy Brief: Drought and California’s Agriculture

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Policy Brief: Drought and California’s Agriculture

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California’s agricultural sector is the nation’s largest: it generates more than $50 billion dollars in annual revenue and employs more than 420,000 people. The ongoing drought is taking a toll on agriculture, related sectors, and rural communities, but there are ways to increase resilience in a warming world.

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8 things you need to know about water scarcity

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8 things you need to know about water scarcity

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8 things you need to know about water scarcity

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As more people experience the climate crisis through water, from too much or too little rainfall and snowmelt. This can lead droughts or floods and impact people and nature everywhere. Discover the key things to know about water scarcity and what WWF is doing to help.

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New Zealand woman and six-year-old son detained for three weeks by Ice in US enduring ‘terrifying’ ordeal

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Sarah Shaw, who has a US visa and lives in Washington state, was detained after attempting to re-enter US from Canada

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Surrey police pose as joggers to catch men harassing women out exercising

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Undercover female officers deployed in pilot scheme to tackle catcalling, resulting in 18 arrests

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Record number of nurses quitting the NHS in England 

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Record number of nurses quitting the NHS in England 

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Record number of nurses quitting the NHS in England – BBC News

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It’s time to abolish the Electoral College

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It’s time to abolish the Electoral College

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It’s time to abolish the Electoral College | Brookings

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Darrell West discusses the history of the Electoral College and argues why the time has come to abolish it.

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Divided America, Divided Government: What’s Next?

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Divided America, Divided Government: What’s Next?

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Divided America, Divided Government: What’s Next? – Center for Effective Lawmaking

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“America Votes” in An Age of Polarization and Democratic Backsliding

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“America Votes” in An Age of Polarization and Democratic Backsliding

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“America Votes” in An Age of Polarization and Democratic Backsliding

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The first of four panels of the “America Votes 2024: Stanford Scholars on the Election’s Most Critical Questions” series examined the changing political and global landscape shaping the upcoming U.S. presidential and congressional

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American Culture: Traditions and Customs of the United States

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American Culture: Traditions and Customs of the United States

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American Culture: Traditions and Customs of the United States

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American culture is a diverse mix of customs and traditions from nearly every region of the world. Here is an overview of US holidays, food, clothing and more

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The USA is the world's foremost economic and military power, with global interests and an unmatched global reach.

America's gross domestic product accounts for close to a quarter of the world total, and its military budget is reckoned to be almost as much as the rest of the world's defence spending put together.

The country is also a major source of entertainment: American TV, Hollywood films, jazz, blues, rock and rap music are primary ingredients in global popular culture.

The United States originated in a revolution which separated it from the British Crown. The constitution, drafted in 1787, established a federal system with a division of powers which has remained unchanged in form since its inception.

Read more country profiles - Profiles by BBC Monitoring

FACTS

LEADERS
President: Donald Trump
Republican candidate Donald Trump defeated Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton to win the presidency in the 2016 election. Mr Trump's victory was one of the biggest upsets in US political history, confounding the opinion polls and putting an end to eight years of Democratic control of the White House.

A billionaire businessman, reality TV star and political outsider, Mr Trump campaigned on a vow to "make America great again".

He presented himself as an agent of change who would bring manufacturing jobs back to the US, tear up unfavourable trade deals, and curb illegal immigration.

During an election campaign generally regarded as the most acrimonious in living memory, Mr Trump drew accusations of racism and misogyny, and managed even to alienate many senior members of his own party. In office, his rhetoric has continued to divide Americans.

President Trump has renegotiated the North America Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico, held talks with the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, imposed tariffs on Chinese imports, withdrawn from the Iran nuclear agreement, and recognised Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.

He has had less success in pushing through his domestic agenda on cutting migration and replacing the Democrats' public healthcare programme, despite managing to enact major tax cuts.

The Democrats' recapture of the House of Representatives at the November 2018 mid-term elections made it harder for President Trump to pursue these policies, and the House went on to impeach him on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in December 2019.

MEDIA

The US has the most highly-developed mass media in the world. Its dramas, comedies, soaps, animations, music videos and films have a global audience and are staple fare for broadcasters worldwide.

Television is the most popular medium. The amount of content consumed via live broadcast TV is falling as video-on-demand platforms flourish.

The US is the home of the internet. Access is unrestricted.

Read full media profile

TIMELINE

1565 - First permanent European settlement in North America.

17th-18th centuries - Hundreds of thousands of Africans brought over and sold into slavery to work on cotton and tobacco plantations.

1775 - American Revolution: George Washington leads colonist Continental Army to fight against British rule.

1787 - Founding Fathers draw up new constitution for United States of America. Constitution comes into effect in 1788.

19th century - Residual resistance by indigenous people crushed as immigration from Europe assumes mass proportions, with settlers moving westwards.

1861-1865 - US Civil War: Federalist forces defeat the Confederate pro-slavery states in the South. Slavery is abolished under the Thirteenth Amendment.

1929-33 - 13 million people become unemployed after the Wall Street stock market crash of 1929 triggers what becomes known as the Great Depression.

1941 - Japan attacks the US fleet at Pearl Harbour in Hawaii, precipitating the United States' entry into World War Two.

1954 - Racial segregation in schools becomes unconstitutional; start of campaign of civil disobedience to secure civil rights for Americans of African descent.

2001 11 September - Co-ordinated suicide attacks on various high-profile targets by the al-Qaeda jihadist group, prompting the US to embark on a ''war on terror'' which includes the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.

2008 - Barack Obama is elected the first black president of the United States.

2016 - Reality TV host and property tycoon Donald Trump regains the presidency for the Republicans on a populist platform.

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The USA is the world's foremost economic and military power, with global interests and an unmatched global reach. America's gross domestic product accounts for close to a quarter of the world total, and its military budget is reckoned to be almost as much as the rest of the world's defence spending put together.

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UK economy expected to rebound in tariff shake-off

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Economists polled by Bloomberg expect the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to show the UK economy grew by 0.2 per cent in June.

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United Kingdom | History, Population, Map, Flag, Capital, & Facts

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United Kingdom | History, Population, Map, Flag, Capital, & Facts

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Table of Contents

United Kingdom, island country located off the northwestern coast of mainland Europe. The United Kingdom comprises the whole of the island of Great Britain-which contains England, Wales, and Scotland-as well as the northern portion of the island of Ireland. The name Britain is sometimes used to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole. The capital is London, which is among the world's leading commercial, financial, and cultural centres. Other major cities include Birmingham, Liverpool, and Manchester in England, Belfast and Londonderry in Northern Ireland, Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland, and Swansea and Cardiff in Wales.

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The origins of the United Kingdom can be traced to the time of the Anglo-Saxon king Athelstan, who in the early 10th century ce secured the allegiance of neighbouring Celtic kingdoms and became "the first to rule what previously many kings shared between them," in the words of a contemporary chronicle. Through subsequent conquest over the following centuries, kingdoms lying farther afield came under English dominion. Wales, a congeries of Celtic kingdoms lying in Great Britain's southwest, was formally united with England by the Acts of Union of 1536 and 1542. Scotland, ruled from London since 1603, formally was joined with England and Wales in 1707 to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain. (The adjective "British" came into use at this time to refer to all the kingdom's peoples.) Ireland came under English control during the 1600s and was formally united with Great Britain through the Act of Union of 1800. The republic of Ireland gained its independence in 1922, but six of Ulster's nine counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland. Relations between these constituent states and England have been marked by controversy and, at times, open rebellion and even warfare. These tensions relaxed somewhat during the late 20th century, when devolved assemblies were introduced in Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Nonetheless, even with the establishment of a power-sharing assembly after referenda in both Northern Ireland and the Irish republic, relations between Northern Ireland's unionists (who favour continued British sovereignty over Northern Ireland) and nationalists (who favour unification with the republic of Ireland) remained tense into the 21st century.

The United Kingdom has made significant contributions to the world economy, especially in technology and industry. Since World War II, however, the United Kingdom's most prominent exports have been cultural, including literature, theatre, film, television, and popular music that draw on all parts of the country. Perhaps Britain's greatest export has been the English language, now spoken in every corner of the world as one of the leading international mediums of cultural and economic exchange.

The United Kingdom retains links with parts of its former empire through the Commonwealth. It also benefits from historical and cultural links with the United States and is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Moreover, the United Kingdom became a member of the European Union in 1973. Many Britons, however, were sometimes reluctant EU members, holding to the sentiments of the great wartime prime minister Winston Churchill, who sonorously remarked, "We see nothing but good and hope in a richer, freer, more contented European commonalty. But we have our own dream and our own task. We are with Europe, but not of it. We are linked, but not comprised. We are interested and associated, but not absorbed." Indeed, in June 2016, in a referendum on whether the United Kingdom should remain in the EU, 52 percent of British voters chose to leave. After much negotiation, several deadline extensions, prolonged domestic political discord, and two changes of prime minister, an agreement on "Brexit" (British exit from the EU) was reached that satisfied both the EU and the majority of Parliament. Thus, on January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom would become the first country to withdraw from the EU.

Ralph Charles Atkins The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Land

The United Kingdom comprises four geographic and historical parts- England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The United Kingdom contains most of the area and population of the British Isles-the geographic term for the group of islands that includes Great Britain, Ireland, and many smaller islands. Together England, Wales, and Scotland constitute Great Britain, the larger of the two principal islands, while Northern Ireland and the republic of Ireland constitute the second largest island, Ireland. England, occupying most of southern Great Britain, includes the Isles of Scilly off the southwest coast and the Isle of Wight off the southern coast. Scotland, occupying northern Great Britain, includes the Orkney and Shetland islands off the northern coast and the Hebrides off the northwestern coast. Wales lies west of England and includes the island of Anglesey to the northwest.

Apart from the land border with the Irish republic, the United Kingdom is surrounded by sea. To the south of England and between the United Kingdom and France is the English Channel. The North Sea lies to the east. To the west of Wales and northern England and to the southeast of Northern Ireland, the Irish Sea separates Great Britain from Ireland, while southwestern England, the northwestern coast of Northern Ireland, and western Scotland face the Atlantic Ocean. At its widest the United Kingdom is 300 miles (500 km) across. From the northern tip of Scotland to the southern coast of England, it is about 600 miles (1,000 km). No part is more than 75 miles (120 km) from the sea. The capital, London, is situated on the tidal River Thames in southeastern England.

The archipelago formed by Great Britain and the numerous smaller islands is as irregular in shape as it is diverse in geology and landscape. This diversity stems largely from the nature and disposition of the underlying rocks, which are westward extensions of European structures, with the shallow waters of the Strait of Dover and the North Sea concealing former land links. Northern Ireland contains a westward extension of the rock structures of Scotland. These common rock structures are breached by the narrow North Channel.

On a global scale, this natural endowment covers a small area-approximating that of the U.S. state of Oregon or the African country of Guinea-and its internal diversity, accompanied by rapid changes of often beautiful scenery, may convey to visitors from larger countries a striking sense of compactness and consolidation. The peoples who, over the centuries, have hewed an existence from this Atlantic extremity of Eurasia have put their own imprint on the environment, and the ancient and distinctive palimpsest of their field patterns and settlements complements the natural diversity.

Relief

Great Britain is traditionally divided into a highland and a lowland zone. A line running from the mouth of the River Exe, in the southwest, to that of the Tees, in the northeast, is a crude expression of this division. The course of the 700-foot (213-metre) contour, or of the boundary separating the older rocks of the north and west from the younger southeastern strata, provides a more accurate indication of the extent of the highlands.

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United Kingdom | History, Population, Map, Flag, Capital, & Facts

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United Kingdom, island country located off the northwestern coast of mainland Europe. It comprises the whole of the island of Great Britain-which contains England, Wales, and Scotland-as well as the northern portion of the island of Ireland. Its capital is London.

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The United Kingdom is a state made up of the historic countries of England, Wales and Scotland, as well as Northern Ireland. It is known as the home of both modern parliamentary democracy and the Industrial Revolution.

Two world wars and the end of empire diminished its role in the 20th century, and the 2016 referendum vote to leave the European Union has raised significant questions about the country's global role.

Nonetheless, the United Kingdom remains an economic and military power with great political and cultural influence around the world.

Read full overview

Read more country profiles - Profiles by BBC Monitoring

FACTS

LEADERS
Head of state: Queen Elizabeth II
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1952 upon the death of her father, George VI.

In September 2015, she became Britain's longest-reigning monarch, surpassing the record of her great-great grandmother, Queen Victoria.

She is also head of state of 16 independent countries including Canada and Australia.

As a constitutional monarch, her role in the legislative process is largely ceremonial.
Prime minister: Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson became prime minister in July 2019 after he beat Jeremy Hunt in the race to become leader of the Conservative Party.

He took over from the previous prime minister, Theresa May, who stood down as Conservative Party leader in June 2019 after failing to get Parliament to agree a way forward on Brexit.

Mr Johnson went on to win a convincing majority at a snap general election in December 2019, paving the way for Britain to leave the European Union in 2020.

MEDIA

The UK has a strong tradition of public service broadcasting and an international reputation for creative programme-making.

The BBC began daily radio broadcasts in 1922 and quickly came to play a pivotal role in national life. The corporation is funded by a licence fee, which every household with a TV set must pay.

Hundreds of privately-owned radio and TV stations now compete with the BBC for listeners and viewers.

There are many national and local newspapers, but print circulations have been sliding while online readership has surged.

There are more than 60 million internet users, and most British people have a social media presence.

Read full media profile

TIMELINE
Some key dates in British history:
1914 - Outbreak of World War I. UK enters hostilities against Germany.

1918 - War ends in November with armistice. The number of UK war dead runs to several hundred thousand.

1921 - UK agrees to the foundation of the Irish Free State. Northern Ireland remains part of the UK.

1924 - First UK government led by the Labour party under Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald.

1939 - Germany invades Poland. UK declares war on Germany.

1940 - Winston Churchill becomes prime minister.

1944 - Allied troops invade France from Britain on D-Day (6th June) and begin to fight their way towards Germany.

1945 - Germany surrenders. Labour leader Clement Atlee is elected prime minister to replace Winston Churchill. The new Labour government introduces the welfare state.

1945 - The UK becomes a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

1948 - National Health Service is established.

1949 - The UK becomes a founder member of Nato.

1960s - Decolonisation of former British-controlled territories gathers pace.

1969-1998 - British troops quell communal unrest in Northern Ireland.

1973 - The UK joins the European Economic Community.

1979 - Conservative Margaret Thatcher begins move towards deregulation of economy.

2020 - Britain leaves the European Union after a referendum vote four years earlier.

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The United Kingdom is a state made up of the historic countries of England, Wales and Scotland, as well as Northern Ireland. It is known as the home of both modern parliamentary democracy and the Industrial Revolution.

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12-Year-Old Swimmer Yu Zidi Wins World Championship Medal 

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12-Year-Old Swimmer Yu Zidi Wins World Championship Medal 

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12-Year-Old Swimmer Yu Zidi Wins World Championship Medal | WION Sports

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Local Elections: Voters lack confidence in all main parties to deliver, with Reform UK poised to do well

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Local Elections: Voters lack confidence in all main parties to deliver, with Reform UK poised to do well

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Local Elections: Voters lack confidence in all main parties to deliver, with Reform UK poised to do well

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New research from Ipsos in the UK sheds light on the factors shaping voter decisions in the upcoming local elections on May 1, 2025.

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The six Labour MPs who have left Keir Starmer's government since election

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The six Labour MPs who have left Keir Starmer's government since election

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A sixth MP has now left Keir Starmer's government since Labour won power in 2024. Here is a rundown of those who have left since Labour came to power on 4 July 2024.

1. Rushanara Ali

The homelessness minister resigned after it emerged tenants of a property she owns who had not had their lease renewed because she planned to sell the property had seen the same property back up for let with a substantial rent increase shortly afterwards.

Her spokesperson said the property had been put up for sale, and the tenants offered the chance to stay until that process ended. But Ali said she stepped down to avoid "becoming a distraction" from the government's work.

2. Vicky Foxcroft

The Labour whip, responsible for ensuring discipline among the party's MPs, herself resigned because she could not support the government's welfare plans. Foxcroft, a shadow disability minister before the general election, said she would not be able to vote for cuts to disability payments.

3. Anneliese Dodds

The international development minister quit over Starmer's decision to almost halve the international aid budget to pay for an increase in defence spending. Dodds had worked closely with the former shadow chancellor John McDonnell in the past and her presence by Starmer's side had been seen by some as an indication he would not turn his back entirely on the left of the party.

Ministerial resignations and sackings by prime minister

4. Andrew Gwynne

Sacked as a health minister and suspended from the party after it emerged he had sent messages in which he said he hoped a pensioner who did not support him would die before the next set of elections, and made racist and sexist comments - including some about Angela Rayner and Diane Abbott.

5. Tulip Siddiq

The anti-corruption minister resigned over claims that her family ties to her aunt Sheikh Hasina - the ousted prime minister of Bangladesh accused of corruption - were harming the government.

While an investigation found no evidence Siddiq had broken any rules, it was suggested she could have been more alive to the reputational risks. She resigned, saying that to stay would have been a "distraction from the work of the government".

6. Louise Haigh

Haigh resigned after it emerged she had pleaded guilty to a fraud offence after wrongly reporting a mobile phone stolen to the police. Haigh was told to resign by No 10 for a possible breach of the ministerial code.

Haigh said the offence was spent and sources said she had declared the conviction to Starmer upon becoming a shadow minister in 2020.

But a No 10 source said they did not believe she had been fully transparent and that her departure was more to do with that than with the original offence.

This article was amended on 8 August 2025. An earlier version of the main image misidentified the MP Oliver Ryan as Andrew Gwynne.

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The six Labour MPs who have left Keir Starmer's government since election

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Five prominent figures have resigned while another was sacked over a scandal involving racist and sexist comments

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Warning of NHS staffing crisis as fifth of doctors tempted to move abroad

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Warning of NHS staffing crisis as fifth of doctors tempted to move abroad

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Warning of NHS staffing crisis as fifth of doctors tempted to move abroad

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General Medical Council warns of ‘ongoing risks to retention of doctors’ in latest report

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People with cancer face ‘ticking timebomb’ due to NHS staff shortages

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People with cancer face ‘ticking timebomb’ due to NHS staff shortages

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People with cancer face ‘ticking timebomb’ due to NHS staff shortages

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Royal College of Radiologists warns of long delays to have surgery or treatment, increasing the chances of disease spreading

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Patients face rationing on NHS unless more cash is pumped in, says think-tank

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Patients face rationing on NHS unless more cash is pumped in, says think-tank

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Patients face rationing on NHS unless more cash is pumped in, says think-tank

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The warning of a “crisis” comes as the main parties set out their priorities in a Sky News special report on the state of the NHS.

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DHL Supply Chain Launches Hydrogen-Powered Trucks in Japan

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DHL Supply Chain Launches Hydrogen-Powered Trucks in Japan

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DHL Supply Chain Launches Hydrogen-Powered Trucks in Japan - Fuelcellsworks

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DHL Supply Chain, the global logistics leader, launches a pilot program using fuel cell trucks powered by hydrogen in Japan to reduce environmental impact.

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The role of AI and smart technology in sustainable transport

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The role of AI and smart technology in sustainable transport

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The role of AI and smart technology in sustainable transport

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Learn how AI and smart tech are revolutionising sustainable transport, unveiling a world where sustainability and mobility intertwine.

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Rachel Reeves announces £15bn for transport projects

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Rachel Reeves announces £15bn for transport projects

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Rachel Reeves announces £15bn for transport projects

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Money will be spent on tram, train and bus projects in England across the Midlands, North and West Country.

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Surrey rolls out dozens of new free sports equipment borrowing stations

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Surrey rolls out dozens of new free sports equipment borrowing stations

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Surrey rolls out dozens of new free sports equipment borrowing stations - BC | Globalnews.ca

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Surrey is the first city in North America to roll out the Equip Sport program, which uses an app to unlock equipment boxes at dozens of public parks and start playing.

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Gender inequality in sport: The challenges facing female athletes

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Gender inequality in sport: The challenges facing female athletes

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This article was originally published in French

Despite the progress made in women's sport, major challenges remain, particularly regarding equal pay, visibility and training conditions.

ADVERTISEMENT

As the FIFA Women's World Cup kicked off last week, women's football finds itself at the centre of the world stage. Despite the progress made in women's sports, major challenges remain, particularly in terms of equal pay, visibility and training conditions.

"The European Commission is monitoring the situation closely" explains Ligia Nobrega, senior analyst at the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE). In 2018, the institute was commissioned by the Council of Europe to collect data on gender equality and sport in the EU Member States and check whether countries are applying the quota policy established in 2022.

According to this policy, by mid-2026, at least 40% of non-executive seats on boards of directors must be held by women, as well as at least 33% of executive and non-executive seats. This means female presidents, vice presidents, members and managers within the European sports confederations.

"We have tried to follow and monitor this initiative and we find that countries that have implemented quotas are achieving a more balanced representation of the sexes more quickly than countries that have not [...] And the best-performing countries are Finland, Sweden and the United Kingdom", explains the expert. "But we are still a long way from having 40% women represented in these organisations", she adds.

Equal pay: A match yet to be won

Despite considerable progress, equal pay remains a major challenge in women's sport. Unlike the United States women's national team - which, through its fight for parity, succeeded in obtaining a collective agreement guaranteeing equal pay for male and female players in the national team - many international federations continue not to offer fair pay to their female athletes.

Although some improvements have been made, women's salaries are still significantly lower than those of their male counterparts.

"We have huge pay inequalities. If I just tell you, for example, that the average salary of a female WNBA player was 110 times less than that of a male NBA colleague, that gives you an idea of the inequalities involved," comments Julian Jappert, director of the Think Tank Sport et Citoyenneté.

In a move aimed at closing the pay gap, FIFA has announced a 300% increase in bonuses for the 2023 Women's World Cup, bringing the total to €135 million. While this is a positive step, there is still a significant gap between the bonuses awarded to men and women at major tournaments. Indeed, at the last Men's World Cup 2022, FIFA allocated around - in performance bonuses to the federations of the participating teams.

According to a recent report by FIFPRO (the International Federation of Professional Footballers' Associations) on the qualifying conditions for players at the World Cup, of the players taking part in the 2023 World Cup, only 40% considered themselves to be professional footballers. While 35% said they were amateurs, 16% said they were semi-professionals and 9% were unsure of their status.

"Among the 362 players we interviewed from six continents around the world who had taken part in the 2023 World Cup qualifiers, there were huge disparities in their salaries," explains Alex Culvin, Head of Women's Football Strategy and Research at FIFPRO. "29% of players received no pay at all for this competition. This means that 66% had to take unpaid leave - or time off from their other professional activities - in order to take part in the World Cup qualifiers," she continues.

These figures are echoed by former French national team player Mélissa Plaza, who is now a sports psychologist: "For all the teams playing in the D1, we're talking about an average monthly salary of between €1,300 gross and €1,600 gross [...] When you're well below €1,300 gross a month, that means one thing, it means that you're not a professional, that you're not being paid exclusively to play football and that you need to have a job on the side," she explains.

Women's training: a field strewn with obstacles

According to Mélissa Plaza, training conditions for female football players are problematic and inadequate compared to the preparation of their male counterparts:

"We often pick up the scraps left over from the boys. All the equipment that's left over from the boys and that's too big or too small, for example, that's what we pick up. So typically, I've got girlfriends who used to play for FC Nantes not so long ago and they used to collect the size 43 socks left over from the boys. And obviously, a size 43 when you're a size 38 doesn't make sense. Often, they were forced to buy their own socks in their own size".

She adds: "When you're a female footballer today when you're playing in the D1, you can regularly find yourself in situations where you find yourself with the last time slot left free by the boys for training, i.e. the 8 pm / 10 pm slot..."

These obstacles are confirmed by the data collected by FIFPRO.

"We have received reports from dissatisfied players who feel that each confederation needs to make significant improvements to its infrastructure, training pitches, accommodation, transport when travelling, as well as outfits and footwear," explains Alex Culvin. What the data tells us, and what we hear repeatedly from players, is that they are not treated or valued as they should be, either by their club or their federation, and that they often have insufficient and random access to infrastructure and facilities.

From the pitch to the screens: in search of popularity

The media play a key role in perpetuating these inequalities, often giving insufficient coverage to women's sporting events compared to their male counterparts. Greater visibility for women's sports has the potential to inspire future generations to take up the sport. Higher attendance at Women's Super League (WSL) matches, with clubs such as Arsenal Women outnumbering the attendance of men's teams, is a testament to the growing interest and commitment of fans. Such visibility plays an essential role in the popularity of these sports.

As Julian Jappert confirms: "There are huge inequalities between the broadcasting of women's sport and men's sport, even though studies show that viewers are interested and that when the channels finally broadcast and take this financial risk and also in terms of ratings, they get results.

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But the popularity of a sport is built up from childhood, according to Cécile Locatelli, a former football player who is now a coach: "Clubs need to make the effort to put competent people in the right place to be able to motivate and bring these young girls into the sport.

Stefan Bergh, President of the NGO ENGSO, which promotes guidelines for grassroots sport across Europe, is optimistic: "What I've noticed over the last four or even six years is that there are higher and stronger expectations at local level too, on the part of every individual practising sport", explains the analyst. "We are_not only seeing women but also many young men expressing themselves on gender issues in a way that we did not see ten years ago".

According to the President of ENGSO, those in positions of authority should raise society's awareness of gender issues: "People in positions of leadership like myself, as President of ENGSO and also Secretary General of the Swedish Sports Confederation, must set an example in terms of achieving gender parity, but also in terms of ensuring that funding is equal between men and women".

More sexism

Sexism in women's sports is a persistent problem that hinders the progress and equality of women athletes. Despite some progress in the recognition and visibility of women's sports, prejudice and gender stereotypes continue to have a negative influence on the perception of women in sports. Sexist comments and unjustified criticism of women athletes' performances persist, helping to devalue their achievements and talents.

A recent example from Italy illustrates the problem.

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During the broadcast of a women's diving event at the World Swimming Championships being held from 23 to 30 July in Fukuoka, Japan, two sports commentators, Lorenzo Leonarduzzi and Massimiliano Mazzucchi, made degrading and inappropriate comments about the physical appearance of the women divers, live on the national public broadcaster RAI:

"The Dutch girls are fat, like our Vittorioso", "They're big, aren't they", "But in bed, they're all the same", "This one is called Harper, she's a harpist, how do you play the harp? Do you...? "Do you touch it? Do you pinch it".

These degrading comments sparked a wave of indignation among viewers and led to the suspension of the two journalists.

Mélissa Plaza recounts how she too witnessed episodes of sexist violence within her team: "I witnessed the prevailing misogyny in this environment. We 'only' won 3-0 at half-time. The guy who coaches us is extremely unhappy with the score and ends up clearly threatening to rape us" "He tells us 'Do you want to be sluts with me? I'm going to fuck you all one by one."

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Gender inequality in sport: The challenges facing female athletes

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Despite the progress made in women's sport, major challenges remain, particularly regarding equal pay, visibility and training conditions.

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What is the reason for Canada’s latest surge in sports superstars?

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What is the reason for Canada’s latest surge in sports superstars?

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NASA’s Webb Sees Galaxy Mysteriously Clearing Fog of Early Universe

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Elon Musk has made an announcement: ‘Starship flight to Mars crewed by Optimus in Nov/Dec next year’

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South Africa Outlines Contingency Plan Eyeing New Export Markets After Trump’s 30% Tariff Move

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South Africa is actively exploring alternative markets to the United States (U.S.) following President Donald Trump's announcement of a 30% tariff on South African imports, set to take effect on August 8, as part of a broader strategy to impose reciprocal trade penalties.

"The decision by the United States to impose a 30% tariff on South African imports highlights the urgency with which we have to adapt to increasingly turbulent headwinds in international trade," President Cyril Ramaphosa wrote in an open letter on Monday.

Several key South African industries, including automotive and agriculture, have been hit hard. Companies such as Gqeberha-based manufacturer of automated assembly lines, Jendamark Automation, revealed that it had lost out on R750 million ($41.7 million) in potential business since last week's announcement.

Having previously enjoyed duty-free access to the U.S. under the now contentious African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA)-established in 2000 under President Bill Clinton-the U.S. market has historically been South Africa's second-largest trading partner.

The 30% tariff places South Africa among the most heavily penalized countries under current U.S. trade policy.

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In a public address on Monday, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola revealed concerns of a 0.2% decline in South Africa's economic growth amid trade uncertainty, but alluded to a possible mitigation if new markets and trade partners are secured.

Pivoting towards additional African and Asian markets appears to be South Africa's strategy.

"Our foremost priority is protecting our export industries," Ramaphosa revealed. "We must also accelerate the diversification of our export markets, particularly by deepening intra-African trade."

"To help our producers and exporters aggressively explore alternative markets, we have established an Export Support Desk to assist affected producers.... This intervention will also play a key role in guiding industries looking to expand into new markets in the rest of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and markets we already have trade agreements with."

Despite the trade tensions, South Africa remains open to rekindle its relationship with the U.S and to continue the conversation to ease restrictions.

"As government, we have been engaging the United States to enhance mutually beneficial trade and investment relations. All channels of communication remain open to engage with the U.S... We remain committed to ongoing engagement with the U.S. and building trade resilience," Ramaphosa concluded.

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South Africa Outlines Contingency Plan Eyeing New Export Markets After Trump's 30% Tariff Move

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South Africa is actively exploring alternative markets to the United States (U.S.) following President Donald Trump's announcement of a 30% tariff on South African imports, set to take effect on August 8, as part of a broader strategy to impose reciprocal trade penalties. "The decision by the United States to impose a 30% tariff on [...]

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Boosting Growth and Prosperity in South Africa

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Boosting Growth and Prosperity in South Africa

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By Kamil Dybczak and Delia Velculescu

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Boosting Growth and Prosperity in South Africa
Improving the business environment, strengthening governance, and reforming the labor market are among the keys to economic success

South Africa is well-positioned to confront significant longstanding challenges that have been holding the economy back: declining real per-capital income, persistent unemployment, pervasive poverty, and one of the highest inequality rates in the world. These outcomes reflect deepening structural rigidities and governance weaknesses, evidenced by the negative contribution of Total Factor Productivity to growth over the past 15 years.

A new Government of National Unity, in power since June 2024, has committed to tackle these challenges by providing new impetus to the ongoing structural reforms initiated in 2020.

"We are steadily removing the obstacles to meaningful and faster growth... [through] economic reforms that we are implementing as part of Operation Vulindlela," South African President Cyril Ramaphosa recently remarked. Major electricity sector reforms are underway, allowing for private-sector participation in electricity generation, including from renewable sources. Reforms to the logistics sector are also ongoing, allowing for private sector participation in freight rail and port operations. The government is also moving to streamline digital communications regulations and water licensing procedures and modernize the eVisa system.

These reforms are an important step in the right direction-necessary to alleviate binding constraints to growth, but on their own not sufficient to generate the productivity gains needed to put the economy on a path toward permanently higher growth.

To help unlock South Africa's full growth potential, the IMF recommends fully implementing the reforms already underway as well as pursuing a package of further structural reforms:

Actions to e nhanc e the b usiness environment -by cutting excessive red tape and administrative requirements and ensuring that small and medium enterprises have fair access to markets - are essential to help support entrepreneurship, firm growth, and job creation.

Further efforts to fight corruption , professionaliz e public administration , and are paramount to build trust in public institutions and creat e a more stable and predictable business climate. improve the governance of state-owned enterprises

C omplementary labor-market reforms to reduce spatial disparities, help young people ent e r the labor force , and make regulat ions for small and medium-sized enterprises more flexible are key to durably reduce the high unemployment rate - and particularly crucial with one in three adults and two in three you ng people out of work .

Recent IMF analysis suggests reforms halving South Africa's business regulation, governance, and labor-market gaps relative to peers could increase medium-run output by 9 percent and further boost employment. By raising employment and growth, such reforms are also key to reducing poverty and ensuring the benefits of growth are widely shared. IMF staff estimates that South Africa's Gini coefficient-a measure of inequality, with higher numbers reflecting higher income disparity-would decline by 10 points, bringing South Africa closer to its peers.

Building broad social support for reform efforts is essential to achieve their full benefits. Recent IMF analysis highlights that communication and engagement, along with policies to support vulnerable groups, are vital to increase acceptance of reforms. For example, providing information about the cost of electricity in South Africa, which is 68 percent higher than in the US, was found to boost support for electricity reforms by 9 percentage points. Furthermore, providing compensatory support to vulnerable groups affected by the reforms would lead 75 percent ofindividuals initially opposed to reforms to become reform supporters.

While the challenges are massive, South Africa's new government has a unique opportunity to use its fresh mandate to implement an ambitious package of reforms that can put the economy on a path toward higher growth and prosperity for all. The IMF stands ready to support South Africa in its efforts to work towards a brighter future.

****

Delia Velculescu is the IMF's mission chief for South Africa. Kamil Dybczak is a senior economist for South Africa in the IMF's African Department.

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Boosting Growth and Prosperity in South Africa

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Improving the business environment, strengthening governance, and reforming the labor market are among the keys to economic success.

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South African economy barely grows in first quarter

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South African economy barely grows in first quarter

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PRETORIA, June 3 (Reuters) - South Africa's economy stagnated in the first quarter, eking out quarter-on-quarter growth of just 0.1%, as contractions in sectors like mining and manufacturing offset a strong performance by agriculture.

Africa's biggest economy has struggled to build momentum since the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, with annual growth averaging less than 1% over the past decade.

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Business and consumer confidence has picked up since the formation of a coalition government last year, but that is yet to translate into higher levels of output.

Tuesday's data was marginally better than expected, as economists polled by Reuters had predicted gross domestic product (GDP) would be unchanged from the previous quarter in seasonally adjusted terms (ZAGDPN=ECI), opens new tab .

But analysts and the country's top statistics official said the weak growth was worrying.

"Our economy is not growing sufficiently, ... and at this state, it is easy for it to slide into the negative," Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke told a press conference.

The agriculture sector grew more than 15% in the first quarter, making the biggest contribution to growth. But mining shrank 4% and manufacturing 2%.

Statistics South Africa revised down its estimate of fourth-quarter growth to 0.4% quarter-on-quarter, from an initial estimate of 0.6%.

Capital Economics said in a research note that the data showed South Africa's economic recovery was losing momentum, strengthening the case for more interest rate cuts from the central bank.

The country's coalition government is trying to lift the growth rate through reforms, but longstanding problems like logistics bottlenecks at the ports and on the freight rail network are only slowly easing.

First-quarter GDP increased 0.8% year on year, versus forecasts for 0.7% growth (ZAGDPY=ECI), opens new tab .

Last week, the central bank revised down its 2025 growth forecast to 1.2% from 1.7%.

Reporting by Kopano Gumbi; Editing by Alexander Winning and Bernadette Baum

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Kopano reports on Southern African economies from Johannesburg, South Africa. She covers everything from central banks to treasuries. Kopano has reported on South Africa's struggling economy, landmark national elections as well as currency fluctuations and market moving decisions made across the Southern African region. Before joining Reuters Kopano worked as a broadcast journalist. She has a masters in journalism from Columbia University in the City of New York.

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South African economy barely grows in first quarter

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South Africa's economy stagnated in the first quarter, eking out quarter-on-quarter growth of just 0.1%, as contractions in sectors like mining and manufacturing offset a strong performance by agriculture.

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How the FA banned women’s football in 1921 and tried to justify it

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How the FA banned women’s football in 1921 and tried to justify it

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
espite women having been turfed out of the workplaces in large numbers and the return of men's football after its suspension between 1915 and 1919, the women's game was thriving at the turn of the 1920s, with the Dick, Kerr Ladies - a famous factory team from Preston - at the forefront.

In 1920, the team would play four international home fixtures against a French team led by the women's sport advocate Alice Milliat at Deepdale, Stockport, in Manchester and then Stamford Bridge. The team then headed to France and played in Paris, Roubaix, Le Havre and Rouen. It would prove to be a hugely popular tour and on the team's return to England, the hype for a scheduled Boxing Day match against rivals St Helens at Goodison Park was building. Few, though, could have predicted the seismic impact the fixture would have on the future of women's football.

On the day of the match 53,000 fans would file into the ground for the game with, according to the diary of the player Alice Stanley, a further 10-15,000 supporters turned away from the at-capacity ground. It set an attendance record that would not be surpassed for 92 years - until Team GB beat Brazil at Wembley during the London 2012 Olympics in front of 70,584 - and remains the biggest domestic game in women's football in England, with the 38,262 who watched Arsenal defeat Tottenham at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on 17 November 2019 at No 2.

It reportedly broke another record too, with the Lancashire Evening Post on 28 December 1920 saying: "The most remarkable 'gate' of the holiday, however, was at Goodison Park yesterday morning [Boxing Day] where the Dick, Kerr Ladies beat St Helens ladies 4-0 in a match on behalf of the unemployed and disabled ex-service men. The attendance was estimated at 53,000 and the receipts were over £3,000 exclusive of tickets. This being an easy record for a charity match in England."

The money raised that day was the equivalent of about £140,000 today. This focused the minds of those watching the Dick, Kerr Ladies and other women's teams with mistrust and trepidation. It would be this hugely successful match that would trigger the devastation of the women's game.

The FA and the political establishment were not blind to the growing popularity and success of women's football. The huge sums of money being raised were outside their jurisdiction and control. Worse still, that money was no longer being raised to support the war wounded but was being channelled into political and working-class causes - causes antithetical to the establishment.

Dick, Kerr Ladies FC before a game in Rhode Island during their 1922 North American tour. Photograph: ullstein bild/Getty Images

So, one year after more than 53,000 spectators turned out to watch at Goodison Park, the FA voted to ban women's football. The sport's governing body did not have the power to ban women from playing outright - that was impossible, so instead they ruled that women's games were barred from FA-affiliated football grounds. The ban was to last for 51 years.

The FA's Consultative Committee's ruling stated:

"Complaints having been made as to football being played by women, Council felt impelled to express the strong opinion that the game of football is quite unsuitable for females and should not be encouraged. Complaints have also been made as to the conditions under which some of the matches have been arranged and played, and the appropriation of receipts to other than charitable objects. The Council are further of the opinion that an excessive proportion of the receipts are absorbed in expenses and an inadequate percentage devoted to charitable objects.

"For these reasons the Council requests the Clubs belonging to the Association refuse the use of their grounds for such matches."

This was not the first time the FA had attempted to place restrictions on the game. In the 1890s, the FA Council sent warnings to clubs about the use of their grounds for ladies' matches. In 1902, the FA passed a motion that banned mixed-sex games, but there is also some evidence pointing to this ban having extended to women's teams' use of FA-affiliated grounds too. There are references that imply it was still in place as far back as 1917.

The presence of such 1902 restrictions would perhaps offer an explanation for the tailing off of the game after popularity in the late 19th century.

Women's football graphic Moving the Goalposts

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Regardless of whether the ban in 1902 similarly denied the use of FA-affiliated grounds, it did not stop the resurgence of women's football during the first world war and it is almost impossible to believe this increased visibility, culminating in the 53,000 spectators at Goodison, did not act as a significant contributing factor to the new ban of 1921.

Gail Newsham, the author of a book on the Dick, Kerr Ladies, believes the record-breaking Boxing Day match, which followed games watched by more than 35,000 at Old Trafford and 25,000 at Deepdale, was instrumental.

"The Goodison match would have sent a seismic shock throughout the football world, because so many people went to that match. We must remember that in 1920 they had expanded the men's leagues - there was a new Division Three, North and South - so they had practically doubled the amount of clubs and all these people are going to watch women's football as opposed to men's football. There was going to be a conflict at some stage, wasn't there?

"The Goodison match acted as a wake-up call. The FA then started stepping in to make it more difficult for clubs to let the grounds to women's teams. Teams and clubs had to supply statements of accounts after every game and they couldn't play without permission from the FA. They were putting obstacles in the way throughout 1921. Then came 5 December, when they dealt the fatal blow and banned them from playing."

The players were furious. "When I spoke to Alice Norris [one of the Dick, Kerr players of the time] and some of the other ladies they all said they thought the FA was just jealous because they were getting bigger crowds," Newsham says. "They were devastated. Everybody knows how much work the women did during the war, all the hard work, the manual jobs, everything that they did, so it didn't stack up."

Reports of the ban were mixed. On one side, the Hull Daily Mail delighted in the ban and praised the FA.

"It is an excellent thing that the Football Association has considered the question of women playing football. The 'FA' is really a sort of Venetian oligarchy in the best sense of the word. It is 'a pyramid of Soviets' - again in the best sense of the word; and we make bold to say that its rule and governance of its great game is a pattern and an example to all legislative bodies, parliament not excepted. This Council is so wise that its decisions are respected universally, and its prestige so high that disobedience never enters the minds of its associates and followers.

"It can bind and loose, make or mar, suppress or exalt, and it controls not only the game, the clubs, the officials, and the players, but the crowd, too - and even the crowd fears it. This august body has decreed that women's football is undesirable. It is a game 'not fitted for females'. It discourages its clubs offering or selling the use of their grounds. It deplores the fact that in some cases so large a share of the 'gate' receipts have gone in 'expenses'. All this is a pretty big mouthful for women's clubs and the public to be going on with! We are not in the least enamoured of women's football."

Others gave space for the players to have their say. The Dick, Kerr Ladies' captain, Alice Kell, described in the press as an "unassuming, intelligent working girl", said:

"We girls play football in a proper spirit. We do not retaliate if we are bowled over, and we show no fits of temper. We are all simply amazed at the action of the authorities in placing a ban upon the sport we love with all our heart. Surely to goodness we have the right to play any game we think fit without interference from the Football Association! We are all working girls dependent upon our weekly wages and living with our parents and others partly dependent upon us."

It took 92 years, when 70,584 turned up at Wembley to watch Great Britain and Brazil in the 2012 Olympic women's football tournament, for the 1920 record attendance to be surpassed. Photograph: Matthew Childs/Action Images/Reuters

There were also dissenting voices in the FA Council meeting that would choose to implement a ban. One came in the form of a statement read to the committee by Major Cecil Kent from Liverpool, a former honorary secretary of Old Westminsters FC. Kent said he had attended about 30 women's football matches and pointed out that the women's game had contributed £100,000 to charity in two years.

"On all hands I have heard nothing but praise for the good work the girls are doing and the high standard of their play," he said. "The only thing I now hear from the man is the street is 'why has the FA got their knife into girls' football?' What have the girls done except to raise large sums for charity and to play the game? Are their feet heavier on the turf than the men's feet?"

While the Dick, Kerr Ladies played on far beyond the ban, as did others, such as Heys from Bradford and Huddersfield Atalanta, the effect of the ban was devastating because it extinguished crowd sizes in an instant. Teams were forced into parks and friendly rugby or athletics clubs, but the stadium capacity offered by men's football clubs could not be matched. Without the opportunity for the masses to watch games regularly in large-capacity venues the interest naturally waned.

"What drives me mad is the injustice of it," says Newsham. "Imagine saying to Kelly Smith, or Megan Rapinoe, or any of the players today: 'That's it, you're not playing any more, you're banned. Nobody's going to remember it, whatever you've done, it doesn't matter, nobody is going to care or remember.' Imagine that. You can't imagine how they would feel, can you? But that's what happened to them."

This is an edited extract from A Woman's Game by Suzanne Wrack: The Rise, Fall, and Rise Again of Women's Football published by Guardian Faber on 16 June, £14.99. To order a copy for £11.99 go to guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply.

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How the FA banned women's football in 1921 and tried to justify it

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espite women having been turfed out of the workplaces in large numbers and the return of men's football after its suspension between 1915 and 1919, the women's game was thriving at the turn of the 1920s, with the Dick, Kerr Ladies - a famous factory team from Preston - at the forefront.

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NHS tracker - are hospital waiting times improving near you?

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