TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan lags many other countries in addressing gender inequality, particularly in raising the share of women in leadership positions, according to a government report released Tuesday.

A task force led by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to promote the U.N. sustainable development goals met at the prime minister's office the same day and reviewed the current status of efforts to close the gaps by 2030.

Referring to the 2024 Global Gender Gap Index released by the World Economic Forum, in which Japan ranked 118th out of 146 economies and last among the Group of Seven nations, the government acknowledged that its efforts remain clearly insufficient.

The index benchmarks the current state of gender parity across four key dimensions -- economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment, according to the Swiss think tank.

The Japanese government set a goal in 2003 to raise the share of women in leadership positions across fields such as politics and business to about 30 percent by 2020. But it later delayed the target to "the earliest possible time in the 2020s," as the proportion at major firms remains stuck in the low teens.

The government report says it will step up efforts to advance gender equality by ensuring women have more opportunities to participate in decision-making across a range of fields.

Gender equality and women's empowerment are among the 17 sustainable development goals adopted at a U.N. summit in 2015. Japan aims to lead in implementing the SDGs both at home and abroad.

The government on Tuesday adopted its latest basic policy on gender equality and women's empowerment, with a focus on local economies and small businesses, amid a trend of female brain drain in rural areas.

"We will advance our efforts to realize a society where everyone can live life to the fullest in their own ways," Ishiba said.

The policy cited a lack of entrepreneurial role models and advisory resources outside major cities and pledged to build a support network for entrepreneurs.

The government plans to create a database of professionals and dispatch experts to places in need nationwide through a new gender equality body slated for launch in fiscal 2026.

Other measures include sexual harassment prevention training at firms investing in start-ups, advisory support for small- and medium-sized companies in rural areas to promote women into leadership roles, and initiatives to address the gender pay gap.