A report by the DiverseCity project says visible minorities are under-represented in the "senior-most leadership positions" in the Greater Toronto Area.

The study, released Wednesday, looked at people in leadership positions in the corporate, public, non-profit and education sectors and found the number of visible minorites to be lacking.

Zhara Dhanani, legal director of the Metropolitan Action Committee on Violence Against Women and Children, said the report confirms what many have always suspected.

"We have the numbers in a clear way haven't had in the past. These numbers help us to make a case to move things along quicker," she said.

Researchers looked at leadership jobs in Toronto, Brampton, Mississauga, Richmond Hill and Markham.

The communities surveyed make up about three quarters of the overall population of the GTA, and nearly 50 per cent of those people are considered to be members of visible minority groups.

"Just 13 per cent of leaders we analyzed are visible minorities. The education sector was the most diverse, and the corporate sector was the least diverse," the report says.

Four per cent of leaders in the corporate sector are non-white. The public sector fares better at eight per cent.

Education leaders at 20%

Elected officials stand at 16 per cent and government agencies at 19 per cent. Visible-minority leadership in the education sector is at 20 per cent.

Ratna Omidvar, executive director of the Maytree Foundation, which helped launch the initiative, says the GTA should not wait for the face and colour of leadership positions to change with evolution.

"We want to grab diversity for all it's worth because it's gold. Grab it and unveil it for its innovation, creativity, its outreach to new markets and customers, and new products. And leadership is the way to start," she said during a news conference to release the report.

The study is the first of three reports that will track the progress of diverse leadership over the next three years.

The research was conducted by Ryerson University and is part of an initiative by the Maytree Foundation and the Toronto City Summit Alliance.