Women Hold 38% of JSE Board Seats, Just 8% of CEO Roles, Finds Report

Women’s representation in South Africa’s boardrooms has improved, but the progress has yet to translate into equal opportunities at the highest levels of executive leadership.

Women held 38% of board positions in JSE Top 40 companies in 2025, up from 36% in 2024, according to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s (JSE) 2025 Sustainability Report. However, women occupied only 27% of executive positions among JSE Top 200 companies, while just 8% of CEOs were women.

The figures highlight a significant gap in South Africa’s leadership pipeline, with women’s representation declining sharply as positions carry greater executive authority.

The JSE report also shows that South Africa performs relatively well internationally in terms of board representation. Women held 33% of board seats among the top 100 JSE-listed companies, compared with a 23% G20 average.

But the same gains in executive leadership have not been seen at board level. Focusing on the JSE Top 200, PwC's 2025 Directors Remuneration and Trends Report reported on the gender breakdown of CEOs at these companies, revealing that women make up just 8% of CEOs. A higher percentage of female CFOs were represented, with 25% compared to 18% in 2024.

Key Highlights:

• Women hold 38% of board positions, but only 27% of executive roles in JSE companies
• Just 8% of CEOs are women, while female CFO representation rose to 25%
• Companies need stronger leadership pipelines, transparent succession planning and equal access to executive opportunities

The numbers are coming back into focus on the challenges that women encounter as they move up in leadership ranks within organizations. Organizational systems are also a key factor in who gets promoted to senior roles, say the experts, as companies have their leadership development programs and initiatives aimed at supporting women.

Opportunities for the future trajectory of leadership may be impacted by access to career defining opportunities. This encompasses profit and loss duties, assignments and strategic roles, succession planning, and sponsorship from senior leaders and direct executive roles.

The decisions that influence leadership readiness can have been made years ago through promotions, assignments and access to influential networks, when companies start looking at candidates for CEO positions.

This has also highlighted the issue of the way organizations are dealing with women's leadership development. Although training and professional development is critical, addressing only the training of women to take leadership positions may fail to address structural barriers within organizations.

The companies are increasingly being urged to question whether or not succession planning is transparent, whether women are sponsored effectively and whether high potential female employees have equal access to succession programs.

A more robust solution would be to monitor the number of women in leadership roles at each step of the corporate leadership pipeline, such as those entering management, advancing to senior management, being promoted to executive roles, and being included in succession programs for CEO and C-suite.

The pathways could be more directly related to leadership development programs at these progression points. Women in high-potential positions can be developed through training programs, sponsorship, and through operational responsibilities and strategic assignments, that will provide experience relevant to an executive role.

The latest figures are a reminder of progress and the work that still needs to be done as South Africa celebrates Women's Month and looks back on National Women's Day.

The JSE has mandated policies to encourage greater diversity at board level for listed companies and has called for the annual reporting of such policies. The next step is to ensure that the same care is extended in the leadership pipeline from the boardroom to the participation in the leadership of executive decision-making and the highest positions within the nation's corporations.