KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 17 (Bernama) -- A new white paper by Ernst & Young showed women's global income is expected to grow from US$13 trillion to US$18 trillion in the next five years.

The US$5 trillion increase is almost twice the growth in gross domestic product expected from China and India together, it said in a statement.

The white paper entitled "High Achievers: Recognising The Power Of Women To Spur Business and Economic Growth" focused on the foundation that women have established in sports, the impact they are now making in all segments of business and society and the work that remains.

The white paper, launched on Aug 11 at a Casa Brazil (Rio 2016's Olympic House) event in London on how to break down the barriers for women both on and off the sports field as the Olympic Games 2012 sets a new record for gender equity, with all 205 participating nations sending at least one woman to compete.

Among the findings in the white paper are female chief executive officers of Fortune 500 companies have doubled in the last decade but this year it is still only 3.6 per cent of the total.

"When the world's industrialised economies are viewed as a group, just 11.1 per cent of board directors are women and in rapid-growth markets that number falls to 7.2 per cent.

"Research shows that women in leadership positions can enhance organisational performance in measurable and quantifiable ways," it said.