DIGITAL INCLUSION Concept Note

Transcription

1 DIGITAL INCLUSION Concept Note This Concept Note is the result of a process of consultation and debate between W20 delegates representing companies, governments and civil society organisations across the globe. It describes some of the challenges involved and reviews, existing recommendations for governments and policy makers. All this can provide a way forward for a coordinated and effective action by the G20 in support of women s empowerment and equality. We wish to thank the following institutions for their valuable contributions (listed in alphabetical order): ARPA, Association for Progressive Communications, Bricksave, Centro de Desarrollo Económico de la Mujer, Centro Redes, Universidad Tecnológica Nacional de Argentina, Developers For Good, Embassy of Canada in Argentina and Paraguay, EQUALS; Faro Digital, Fundación para el Estudio e Investigación de la Mujer; Fundación Activismo Feminista Digital, Fundación Huésped, Fundación Conocimiento Abierto, Fundación Sadosky, Fundación UPWARD Argentina, Hacklab Violeta, ILDA, IT for Change, Lasdesistemas, Media Chicas, Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation, Mujeres que no fueron tapa, Red Argentina de Género, Tecnología de mujeres afrolatinoamericanas, Tecnología e Innovación Productiva de la Nación, Ministerio de Ciencia Tecnología e Innovación Productiva de Santa Fe, UN Women, Voces Vitales Argentina, Women in the Digital Ecosystem, Women TechMakers Río de la Plata. As well as the kind review and useful comments of our Topic Chair, GSMA, and our Knowledge Partners: Fundación Mujeres en Igualdad, Red Argentina de Género, Ciencia y Tecnología (RAGCyT), and Wikimedia Argentina. Summary Digital technologies have become a powerful force for social and economic development, delivering substantial benefits for both individuals and society. Digital technologies empower women, providing them with access to information, services and life enhancing opportunities 1. Ensuring women are digitally included brings significant benefits not only to them, but to their communities, economies and general development 2. However, women s participation in the information society 3 is constrained by two main factors: too many women face barriers to access and use digital technologies; and, underpinning this, too few women are involved in the design, development, production and governance of digital technologies. Latest estimates from the ITU (2017) suggest that women globally are 12% less likely to use the internet 4. A recent GSMA study shows that in low- and middle-income countries, women 1. e.g. Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) (2016). The Affordability Report; World Bank (2016). World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends; UNCTAD. (2015). Implementing WSIS Outcomes: A Ten-Year Review; Web Foundation (2015). Women s Rights Online: Report cards; GSMA (2015a). Bridging the gender gap: mobile access and usage in low- and middle-income countries. London: GSMA. 2. Chair, C. (2017). Internet use barriers and user strategies: perspectives from Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Rwanda. RIA Policy Paper: Beyond Access series:39; GSMA (2015a):7; Gillwald, A., Milek, A., & Stork, C. (2010). Gender assessment of ICT access and usage in Africa. Towards Evidence-based ICT Policy and Regulation, vol. 1(5):i. 3. The Information Society usually refers to a society in which the creation, distribution, use, integration and manipulation of information is a significant economic, political, and cultural activity. In 2003 in its Declaration of Principles, the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) expressed the common desire and commitment to build a people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented Information Society, where everyone can create, access, utilize and share information and knowledge, enabling individuals, communities and peoples to achieve their full potential in promoting their sustainable development and improving their quality of life WSIS (2003). Declaration of Principles, Building the Information Society: a global challenge in the new Millennium. 4. ITU (2017). ITU Facts & Figures. Geneva: ITU.

2 are 26% less likely to use mobile internet than men, the primary means of accessing the internet in many parts of the world. 5 Women are also often under-represented at senior levels in high-technology industries - including the digital sector- and there is a substantial gender gap, in both developed and developing countries, in skills, jobs and careers involving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM subjects). These gender gaps begin in education from the primary school and continue in the workplace limiting the access to high productivity enterprises and remaining in low-wage employment. The increasing economic and social importance of digital technologies means that disparities and gender biases could exacerbate existing inequalities experienced by women rather than reduce them. This digital gender gap is unlikely to close on its own. Its root causes are driven by a complex set of social, economic and cultural barriers which can only be overcome with targeted intervention by all stakeholders. G20 Member States already play a leading role in digital transformation and digital development, supporting the SDGs. Concerted action including clear policies and cooperation amongst them and in partnership with other stakeholders can address the digital gender gap and ensure that women are not being left behind. Introduction Digital technologies, including the internet, mobile and broadband communications and other rapidly evolving information and communication technologies (ICTs), 6 have the potential to empower women and help overcome some of the inequalities and barriers to opportunity and achievement that they face. That potential, however, will only be unlocked if women have the same opportunities to access, use digital technologies and benefit from them, as men do. Women s participation in the Information Society 7 is constrained at present by two main factors: (1) too many women mostly, from developing countries and lower socioeconomic status - face barriers to access and use digital technologies ; and, underpinning this, (2) too few women mainly, from privileged backgrounds - are involved in the design, development, production and governance of digital technologies. If these digital gender gaps are not addressed, digital technologies may exacerbate gender inequalities rather than helping to reduce them. For example, digital exclusion also means that women in poverty may not be able to easily access government schemes and services that are increasingly going digital, further deepening their exclusion. The digital economy can also lead to greater inequality. For example, studies indicate that the digital economy may worsen gender divides in pay and job status 8 and that women may be the worst affected by the normalisation of precarious employment in the gig economy. 9 Digital inclusion matters to women, because it makes it less costly to communicate and gives them access to valuable information, facilitates their financial independence and enables them to live independent lives and enjoy independent livelihoods. 10 Such positive impacts do not extend only to women, but to their communities, businesses, economies and 5. GSMA (2018). The Mobile Gender Gap Report. London: GSMA. 6. Digital technologies are all types of electronic equipment and applications which use information in the form of binary code (strings of only two numeric characters, usually 0 and 1). Such technologies include computers, personal computers, calculators, cellular telephones, communications satellites, and high-definition television sets. This paper adopts a broad definition of digital technologies to encompass current and future technologies; including ICTs, cloud computing, big data, artificial intelligence etc. 7. See endnote See endnote 1.

3 general development. 11 As societies become increasingly dependent on digital technology, women, their broader communities and national economies are at risk of losing out on the positive promise of full participation in digital economies. What is the digital gender divide? 1. Access and use The extent to which data are available on access and use of digital technologies by women and men varies between countries. Nevertheless, available evidence is clear. Latest (2017) estimates from the ITU suggest that women globally are 12% less likely than men to use the internet. Women are also less likely than men to own or use a mobile phone, the most common means of personal communications and internet access in developing countries. 12 A 2018 GSMA report found that women in low- and middle-income countries are on average 26% less likely to use mobile internet. Moreover, this gender gap is also wider in developing countries and also in vulnerable population groups in developed countries. The World Bank highlighted that there are approximately 3.9 billion people offline, 13 and that many of these offline populations share common characteristics they are predominantly rural, low-educated, with lower incomes, and a large number are women and girls 14. GSMA evidence suggests that women who live in South Asia are 26% less likely to own a mobile than their male peers, and 70% less likely to use mobile internet. 15 This data is useful in establishing the scale of the gender digital divide, but is also important to assess how access and use are experienced by particular groups of women (for example, elderly women, women who live in rural areas, those who live with disabilities, those who face discrimination because of their sexuality, those who are refugees). Some groups of women are relatively well-served in the digital environment, while others experience multiple disadvantages. To be beneficial to women, access to and use of digital technologies must be universal, affordable, unconditional, meaningful and equal 16 and must meet the diversity of women s varying circumstances, needs and priorities, in the different countries and different contexts in which they live their lives and earn their livelihoods. 2. Participation in design, development and production of digital technologies Women participation in the design, development, production and governance of digital technologies is also limited and unequal. There is a substantial gender gap, in both developed and developing countries, where skills, jobs and careers involving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (known as STEM subjects) are concerned Chair, 2017:39; GSMA, 2015a:7; Gillwald, Milek & Stork, 2010:i. 12. GSMA, 2015a. 13. BroadBand Commision The State of Broadband:Broadband catalyzingsustainable development available from: World Development Report 2016, Digital Dividends, World Bank 2016, available from: en/publication/wdr GSMA, Gurumurthy, A. & Chami, N. (2017). A Feminist Action Framework on Development and Digital Technologies. Johannesburg: APC:8; Adera, E.O.; Waema, T.W.; May, T.; Mascarenhas, O. & Diga, K. (2014). ICT Pathways to Poverty Reduction: Empirical evidence from East and Southern Africa; Thas, A.M.K. (2005). Paddling in circles while the waters rise: Gender issues in ICTs and poverty reduction. Johannesburg: APC. 17. APC (2015). How technology issues impact women s rights: 10 points on Section J. Johannesburg: APC:13.

4 Moreover, women are under-represented at senior levels in high-technology industries, including the digital sector. 18 The problem begins with education. Gender differences are present at all levels of STEM education starting at primary school, but particularly higher levels; globally, young women represent just 35% of all students enrolled in STEM-related disciplines in higher education. 19 New opportunities are often accompanied today by a demand for more advanced skills, which can further marginalize women who have not developed them. The gap continues within employment. Women are less likely than men to enter STEM careers and more likely to leave them. 20 In the technology sector, men outnumber women at every level, with the starkest differences at the top of the industry, where women make up just 21% of technology executives. More participation by women in leading this dynamic sector would help to improve their financial status, redress this wider deficit in female leadership and provide much-needed role models for girls in education and early careers. 21 Lastly, the under-representation of women in the sector can also be linked to gender-biased observed in machine learning, image recognition and other AI tools (IDG, 2018). Software trained on biased datasets can mirror and amplify these biases 22, code discrimination against women into big data processes 23, and design gender-blind digital artefacts, such as digital assistants 24. These implications are significant considering that companies and governments are increasingly turning to these tools (Bloomberg 2017). What are the barriers to digital inclusion? 1. Barriers to access and use The barriers to women s digital access and use are interrelated and are often deeply rooted in social and economic barriers that constrain women s ability to benefit from accessing and using digital technologies. While men also experience structural inequalities 25, such as those in income, education and employment opportunities as well as social norms, on average, women are likely to experience them more severely. A holistic approach is required if the digital gender gap is to be effectively addressed. Improved gender-disaggregated data on internet access and use is also critical for understanding and measuring the digital gender gap and informing policy and strategies for addressing it. 2. The availability of relevant infrastructure This refers to the physical unavailability or inadequacy of infrastructure, including network coverage and the electricity required to power devices. Women who live in poor and remote areas often find the internet particularly difficult to access because of limited connectivity or lack of energy. Public access facilities can offer an alternative solution; however, such facilities may only be available in locations that women find unsafe or inaccessible, or where 18. ISACA (2017). The Future Tech Workforce: Breaking Gender Barriers; World Bank (2016). World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends:100; AkiraChix (2015, May). Women in STEM: Attitudes and motivations for women using technology & entering technology careers in Kenya:41; Microsoft, UNESCO, UN Women & ITU (2014). Girls in STEM and ICT Careers: The Path toward Gender Equality: UNESCO (2017a). Cracking the Code: Girls and Women s Education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). 20. UNESCO, 2017a; UNESCO (2017b). Facts and Figures: Cracking the Code: Girls and Women s Education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); ISACA, ISACA, 2017: assistant-bots-stand-up-for-themselves-in-the-face-of-sexualharassment/ 25. c.f. Research ICT Africa, LIRNEasia & DIRSi (2018). After Access: the Inside Internet Story of Africa, Asia and Latin America.

5 social norms and safety concerns curtail freedom of movement. In some societies, women also experience difficulties in obtaining proof of identification which is required to open accounts or register SIM cards Cost and affordability Cost of device and cost of connectivity and usage can have a significant effect on women s ability to benefit from the internet. Cost, for instance, remains the greatest barrier to mobile phone ownership for many men and women. 27 Cost typically affects women more than men because women s income is generally lower. 28 In addition, women often have less financial independence and find it more difficult to access capital than men. 29 Women are therefore more sensitive to price when buying devices, and often choose those with poorer quality and connectivity, enabling lesser access to the internet and other information sources. 4. Design and usability The design of digital technologies impacts on women s ability to use them. 30 Unfortunately, because too few women are involved in the design and development of digital technologies, women s needs and priorities are insufficiently considered in the development of devices and services Skills Relatedly, women also lack the skills and confidence to engage with digital technologies effectively at every level, from basic usage to professional work and governance. In many countries, girls have poorer access to education than boys and, as a result, more are illiterate. 32 Limited literacy leads on to lack of digital skills and lack of confidence, reducing women s ability to take advantage of online resources. 33 Women are less likely than men to use transformational services (like mobile internet) as a result of this lack of confidence Safety and security Digital technologies can both empower women and foster abuse that disempowers them. It is increasingly recognised that online abuse should be considered an aspect of gender- 26. GSMA (2015b). Accelerating digital literacy: empowering women to use the mobile Internet. London: GSMA. 27. GSMA, Web Foundation, e.g. A4AI, 2016:19; APC, 2015d; GSMA, 2015a:44; UNCTAD & ILO (2014). Empowering Women Entrepreneurs through ICT: A practical guide: e.g. Adera, E.O.; Waema, T.W.; May, T.; Mascarenhas, O. & Diga, K. (2014). ICT Pathways to Poverty Reduction: Empirical evidence from East and Southern Africa:116; Kee, J. SM. (2005). Cultivating violence through technology? Exploring the Connections between Information Communication Technologies (ICT) and Violence Against Women (VAW). Johannesburg: APC; Thas, GSMA, 2015a. 32. e.g. UNESCO (2015). Mobile Phones & Literacy: Empowerment in Women s Hands A Cross-Case Analysis of Nine Experiences:20; Galperin, H.; Mariscal, J. & Barrantes, R. (2014, July). The Internet and Poverty: Opening the Black Box. DIRSi; Thas, 2005; UN Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), Gender Working Group (1995). Gender Missing Links: Equity in Science and Technology for Development. 33. Ya'u, Y.Z. & Aliyu, M.A. (2017). Internet for Men? Overcoming Gender-based Digital Exclusion in Northern Nigeria: A Strategy Document. Kano State: Centre for Information Technology and Development:24; Rajapakse, C., Zainudeen, A., Galpaya, H. & Suthaharan, P. (2016) Factors influencing use of mobile data services among women in Myanmar. Conference paper presented at CPRsouth 2017: Connecting the Next Billion, Yangon, Myanmar; Web Foundation, 2015; A4AI, 2015:14; Galperin et al., 2015; Deen-Swarray, M. Gillwald, A. & Morrell, A. (2012). Lifting the veil on ICT gender indicators in Africa. Evidence for ICT policy Action: Policy paper 13:1; de Silva, H., Ratnadiwakara, D., & Zainudeen, A. (2011). Social Influence in Mobile Phone Adoption: Evidence from the Bottom of the Pyramid in Emerging Asia. Information Technologies & International Development, vol. 7(3):1-18; Hilbert, M. (2011). Digital gender divide or technologically empowered women in developing countries? A typical case of lies, damned lies and statistics. Women's studies International forum, 6: ; Zainudeen, A. & Ratnadiwakara, D. (2011). Are the Poor Stuck in Voice? Conditions for Adoption of More-Than-Voice Mobile Services. Information Technologies International Development, vol. 7(3): GSMA, 2015a.

6 based violence 35 that limits women s freedoms and human rights, and violates the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). 36 Online harassment, abuse and violence can represent significant barriers to access for many women. 37 Those women who live in poor and remote areas may only be able to access the internet at schools, where privacy is limited, or public access facilities, which may be unsafe or inaccessible. Those women who own or wish to own devices often feel vulnerable to theft, online harassment, surveillance, illegal data retention and fraud. 38 In many countries, women have experienced online abuse from petty harassment and trolling to stalking and sexual intimidation. Social media platforms have often been lax in addressing sexism and misogyny 39. Recent events have also highlighted concerns over the use of personal data 40 - unethical/ illegal data practices can discriminate against women 41 and privacy concerns have been expressed in relation to women s health related data 42. Nevertheless, studies also show that women can use mobile-related services to protect and enhance their personal security Awareness and relevant content In developing countries, many women are unsure or unaware of the potential of communications services to benefit their lives. Recent research by LIRNEasia shows that awareness of the internet is very low, particularly amongst women. Many internet users, particularly in developing countries, equate the internet with social media services like Facebook rather than the more diverse services it offers. 44 Women with little disposable income, time, literacy or awareness of the internet have little incentive to spend time and money to gain access. The lack of relevant content also exacerbates this problem. ICT services and applications are sometimes criticised for focusing mostly on men s priorities or paying too little attention to women s needs for example, private access to information on reproductive health. These biases are also present in the production of digital and software content. For instance, women account for 8%-16% of Wikipedia content editors (Wikimedia Foundation Wikipedia editor surveys, 2011). 8. Cultural norms A final factor inhibiting women s access to and use of digital technologies concerns the cultural norms that shape women s lives to different degrees in different countries. Cultural 35. Briones, I. & Sulathireh, T. (2016). Security in Contentious Contexts: Exploring Digital Resilience for Organisations Serving Sexual and Gender Minorities (Monitoring Regional and Global Activities chapter). In; Arrow for Change (2016). Sexuality, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, and the Internet. Asian-Pacific Resource & Research Centre for Women:34; APC & Hivos (2013). Global Information Society Watch 2013 Women s rights, gender and ICTs. Johannesburg: APC; Kee, e.g. Scott, S., Balasubramanian, S. & Ehrke, A. (2017). Ending the Gender Digital Divide in Myanmar: A Problem-Driven Political Economy Assessment. IREX; Broadband Commission Working Group on Broadband and Gender (2017). Recommendations for action: bridging the gender gap in Internet and broadband access and use; Web Foundation, 2015; GSMA, 2015a:50; APC, 2015; Dhatta, B. (2015). Porn. Panic. Ban. In: Global Information Society Watch: Sexual Rights and the Internet. Johannesburg; APC & Hivos, 2013: e.g. Scott et al., 2017:10; Ya'u & Aliyu, 2017:3; Chair, 2017; Web Foundation, 2015; GMSA, 2015a:50; APC, 2015; Lyndon, A., Bonds Raacke, J. & Crattty, A. (2011). College students' Facebook stalking of ex partners. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, vol. 14 (12): ; APC & Hivos, Broadband Commission, 2017; UNESCO, 2017a article/facebookenforcement-hate-speech-rules-mistakes GSMA, Research ICT Africa, 2017; Chair, C. & Deen-Swarray, M. (2016). Determining user capabilities to ensure the achievement of ESCRs through Internet use. In: Global Information Society Watch, 10th Edition; GSMA/LIRNEasia. (2015). Mobile phones, internet, and gender in Myanmar. London: GSMA; Mirani, L. (2015). Millions of Facebook users have no idea they re using the Internet.

7 factors which act as barriers to digital technologies are difficult to address, deeply entrenched, and often so subtle that women fail to fully recognise their impact. Examples of such barriers are for example, the prioritization of boys education over that of girls, or women s fear of the internet because they believe content may be inappropriate, offensive or harmful to them. 45 These barriers may exacerbate other inequalities women face, including those arising from lower incomes and educational attainment levels. 9. Barriers to women s participation in design, development, production and governance The gender gaps affecting skills and access to jobs and careers in STEM disciplines and workplaces, including digital technologies, begin with the barriers women face in education since primary school. Some teachers and parents, for example, and indeed some students, believe that STEM subjects are more appropriate to boys than girls, discouraging girls from studying them. Other issues are more general, like stereotypical perceptions of women s roles in society in curricula, textbooks and teacher education programmes. 46 Without relevant skills, many women are less able to benefit from the potential of digital technology for employment, enterprise and business. 47 As a result of existing gaps, the technical departments in digital businesses are predominantly staffed by men. Male-dominated workplaces may also be unattractive to women because of the risk of harassment and inappropriate behaviour, and also because they perpetuate a certain archetypal employee leading to cultures within organisations that while superficially acknowledge diversity effectively marginalize women. As things stand, these factors tend to reinforce the gender bias in STEM and ICT employment. In addition, stereotypes and assumptions about types of work that are appropriate for men and women are widespread. There is also often gender bias in recruitment and promotion that affects women s ability to participate fully in the design, development, production and governance of digital technologies. One study found that approximately 66% of women surveyed had experienced some form of bias against them in the workplace as well as uneven progression opportunities GSMA (2017). Triggering mobile internet use among men and women in South Asia. London: GSMA. 46. UNESCO, 2017b. 47. ISACA, 2017; World Bank, 2016; UNESCO, 2015:11; Cummings, C. & O Neil, T. (2015). ODI: Do digital information and communication technologies increase the voice and influence of women and girls? A rapid review of the evidence: 7; Galperin et al., 2014; UNCTAD & ILO, 2014:iii; Moyo, M. & Deen-Swarray, M. (2013). Gender and Entrepreneurship in the Informal Sector: An African Perspective. Conference paper presented at CPRsouth 2013: Innovation & Entrepreneurship in ICT: Changing Asia/Africa, Mysore, India. 48. ISACA, 2017.