THE PHILIPPINES has the second most women in senior management after South Africa, according to P&A Grant Thornton.
According to the company’s Women in Business 2026 report, 44.5% of senior roles in the Philippines are held by women, up from 43% in 2025.
South Africa had the highest share at 47.3%. Other countries in the study are included Thailand (44.1%), Colombia (43.4%), Malaysia (41.9%), Japan (21.5%), and South Korea (21.1%).
The number of Filipino women in senior management exceeded the global average of 32.9% and 31.8% across Asia-Pacific.
Only 1.1% of businesses in the Philippines have male leadership teams, says P&A Grant Thornton.
“In today’s competitive talent environment, organizations that clearly focus gender equality in their strategy are in a better position to attract and retain high-performing leaders,” said Romualdo V. Murcia III, chairman and managing partner of P&A Grant Thornton, in a statement.
Colombia, Vietnam, India and South Africa reported that no businesses have male leadership teams, it added.
The report also noted that 98.9% of Filipino businesses have diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, higher than the global average of 92.7%.
About 80.7% of Philippine businesses say they will update their DEI policies by 2025, while 33.3% plan to introduce new ones.
Job seekers are more likely to choose a company with strong DEI policies, says P&A Grant Thornton.
About 97.7% of business leaders say they look at a company’s gender equality programs when applying for a new job, and 71.6% see it as a top priority.
The report also noted that 40.9% of businesses said that potential hires questioned gender equality.
“We’re seeing candidates focus more on culture than numbers,” said Abe Pelayo, group director of people and culture at P&A Grant Thornton.
“They want to know that the workplace is fair, that people are treated fairly, and that opportunities are truly open to everyone.”
It added that the women hired in senior positions in the past six months came from companies with less than 50 employees.
“This suggests that active women leaders are looking for platforms where growth paths are clear, leadership is visible, and inclusion is measurable,” said P&A Thornton.
Most Philippine businesses said they have embedded gender equality in senior leadership roles (60.9%) and recruitment and selection processes (56.3%). However, gender equality is less focused on employee bonus coverage at 55.2%.
The report also warned that 8% of Philippine businesses said they planned to relax or have loosened some of their gender equality policies.
“Given the external pressures and changes organizations have faced this year, it’s only natural that many are re-evaluating their efforts,” said Eleanor L. Roque, tax principal at P&A Grant Thornton.
The most common areas of concern when companies revisit their gender equality efforts include senior leadership roles, training programs, and employee compensation, says P&A Grant Thornton.
Asked to comment, the Chief Analyst of Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Michael L. Ricafort said that adopting DEI programs is now a common practice around the world.
“This is part of compliance with ESG (environmental, social, and governance) standards, and global regulators are encouraged to comply with global best practices,” he said via Viber. – Beatriz Marie D. Cruz
