Bridging the Global Digital Divide for Women
By Marisa Rivera
As an eternal optimist, I believe that in every crisis - there is an
opportunity. The year 2020 created, on one hand, a big
set-back for women in the workforce, more than 3 million
women in the U.S. left their jobs to care for their children because of the
pandemic and having to home school (2021 McKensey & Co &
LeanIn.org report) and many other were laid off. The cases of
domestic violence skyrocketed, small businesses collapsed and many
women across industries were laid off. On the other hand, in one of the
most tumultuous years in history, women’s resilience still prevailed.
¡Las Jefas!
Women worldwide, using technology, and connecting online, collaborating
across borders, lifting each other up, fighting for food security and organizing
food drives and health care campaigns for their communities, standing up to
warlords in conflict zones, building systems to end gender-based violence and white
supremacy. Women also worked in educating girls in refugee camps, organizing
voting campaigns and advocating in international forums for climate action and
indigenous rights, taking technology in their hands to strengthen peace movements,
and so much more. (World Pulse 2021).
The reality is that the gender digital divide is real. Nearly half of the world’s
women are still offline. According to the World Economic Forum, women have 23
percent less access to the internet than men—30–50 percent less in some
countries—and the skills gap is only worsening. While UN sustainable
development goals speak to the potential of technology to enable women’s
empowerment, women continue to face barriers to unlocking their full potential.
Now more than ever, digital spaces must be safe and accessible for women.
I am a proud advisory board member to World Pulse, www.worldpulse.org,
a non-profit organization dedicated to amplifying women’s voices around the
world using digital technology. At the beginning of the global COVID-19
pandemic, World Pulse surveyed grassroots women leaders from around the
world on key technology issues and opportunities. Approximately 416 women
from 54 countries responded to the survey. The report #SheTransformsTech
shows how women are using the internet, social media, and online
documentation to rewrite their own country’s narrative and realities as they
experienced them.
The report outlines some of the ways technology has enabled them to raise
their voices, gain access to resources, and connect with others, all of which have
contributed to their empowerment.
The report also highlights the recommendations made by women and for
women to address the gender digital divide, such as:
(1) more digital skills training,
(2) more women in decision-making in technology,
(3) stronger laws against online harassment and abuse,
(4) more women in decision-making in government, and
(5) more women digital teachers and trainers, among others. We must
listen to their recommendations and act.
To read the full report, visit:
https://worldpulse.s3.amazonaws.com/World_Pulse_She_
Transforms_Tech_Report_SM_18bdf9577e.pdf.
Now more than ever, digital spaces must be safe and accessible for women.
As the global COVID-19 pandemic has made clear, digital tools are integral for
staying up to date, finding news, staying connected, and standing up and
speaking out. But they are not without barriers and challenges. Disconnection
and discrimination are slowing women’s global progress as makers and users
of technology, and there is still a long way to go to make tech equitable for all.
There is an urgent need to combine the power of women with the power of
technology to speed up the pace for change. Technology could be the greatest
equalizer for “Las Jefas” (women) - Let us do it together!
LS
Want to comment or have any questions on this article?
Email us at info@latinastyle.com
Marisa Rivera is
president of
Mpowerment Works,
a motivational
speaker, executive
coach and
leadership and
empowerment
consultant. Marisa@
MpowermentWorks.
com.
40 www.latinastyle.com LATINAStyle V ol. 27, No. 3, 2021
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