( CNN ) -- What 's it like to be a woman today ? On Thursday , the world marks International Women 's Day , first observed more than 100 years ago . Decades later , take a look at how women fare in the areas of education , jobs and more , and how American women compare with others around the world : . Health and well-being . 86 years -- The average life expectancy for a woman in Japan , the longest in the world . 81 years -- The average life expectancy for a woman in the United States . 44 years -- The average life expectancy for women in Afghanistan and Zimbabwe , the shortest in the world . 16.5 million -- The approximate number of women living with HIV/AIDS worldwide , 50 % of the total number . 59 % -- The percentage of HIV-positive adults in Sub-Saharan Africa who are female , approximately 12.9 million people . 21 % -- The percentage of HIV-positive adults in North America who are female , approximately 252,000 people . 54 % -- The percentage of U.S. women who died of heart disease , cancer and strokes in 2007 out of all causes -- approximately 658,000 people . 177 -- Number of countries that provide paid maternity leave . 0 -- Amount of paid maternity leave guaranteed in the United States . Labor and employment . 91 % -- The percentage of a man 's paycheck that a woman in Sweden earns , working in manufacturing . 57 % -- The percentage of a man 's paycheck that a woman in South Korea earns , working in manufacturing . 81 % -- The percentage of a man 's paycheck that a woman in the United States earns , in all fields . 58 % -- The percentage of U.S. women who participate in the work force , up from 33 % in 1950 . 0 -- Number of female CEOs in the top 20 companies on the Fortune 500 . Education . 86 % -- The percentage of girls enrolled in primary school worldwide . 39 million -- Number of girls worldwide who are not in school , 54 % of the total number of children . 850,000 -- Number of girls in North America and Western Europe not in school . 510 million -- Number of illiterate women worldwide , two-thirds of the total number of illiterate people . 87 % -- Percentage of U.S. women who have at least a high school diploma . 28 % -- Percentage of U.S. women who have at least a college degree . Politics . 95 -- The number of women serving in the 112th Congress in the United States . 17 % -- The percentage of U.S. Congress members who are female . 56 % -- The percentage of Rwanda 's parliament who are female . 2 -- The number of countries that allowed women to vote in 1911 . 2 -- The number of countries that prohibit women from voting in 2012 ( Saudi Arabia and Vatican City )
International Women 's Day is March 8 . It was first observed more than 100 years ago . Take a look at how U.S. women compare with others in areas of jobs , education and more .