The ill-treatment to women in Pakistan has much been talked about and a new United Nations report confirms this point as the country stands first in holding biases against women.

The Gender Social Norms Index report released by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) studied 75 countries making 80 per cent of the world's population. The index measured how social beliefs act as a hindrance to gender equality in areas like politics, work, and education.

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The prejudiced views that were asked in the study were: that men are better politicians and business leaders than women; that going to university is more important for men than women; and that men should get preferential treatment in competitive job markets.

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The findings revealed that the percentage of those holding at least one sexist bias was largest in Pakistan, 99.81 per cent.

Qatar and Nigeria followed Pakistan with 99.73 per cent.

Ahead of the International Women's Day on March 8, the research doesn't present a brighter picture as 90% of the people studied worldwide have at least one prejudice against women.

Andorra had the least population with sexist beliefs, at 27.01 per cent, and Sweden and the Netherlands were next to it with 30.01 per cent and 39.75 per cent.

France, Britain and the United States had similar scores, with 56 per cent, 54.6 per cent and 57.31 per cent of people respectively holding at least one prejudice.

The numbers show "new clues to the invisible barriers women face in achieving equality" despite "decades of progress," the UNDP said in a statement released along with the report.