DigitALL: the technology for gender equality. This is how the United Nations Women’s Organization celebrates International Women’s Day

Over the past decade, the exclusion of women from the digital sphere has reduced the GDP of low- and middle-income countries by a trillion dollars. The under-representation of women in STEM careers – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – remains a major barrier to women’s participation in governance to this day. And the threat of online gender-based violence often forces them out of digital spaces.

Filling the digital gaps. The more everyday life becomes digitised, the more the gender gap in the digital world threatens to leave women behind. The disparity between men’s and women’s access to virtual reality has increased by 20 million since 2019. Today, 63 percent of women surf the net, compared to 69 percent of men. Women are 12 percent less likely to own a cell phone, a figure that hasn’t changed since the pre-pandemic period.

The most marginalized. Race, age, disability, and socioeconomic status play key roles in determining digital access and use by women. The most vulnerable groups such as elderly, disabled or rural women face even greater barriers. In the least developed countries, although mobile broadband signals cover 76 percent of the population, only 25 percent of people are connected. Men are 52 percent more likely to be part of this online minority.

The causes of the digital divide. However, addressing the shortcomings of the digital divide means addressing crucial issues such as economic inequality, access to electricity, privacy, online security, digital literacy. Governments should subsidize smartphones and laptops for women and incentivize the provision of low-cost fares to overcome gender barriers. This also applies to digital education programmes, which can help girls acquire the skills needed to work successfully in the digital world.

Support girls in STEM jobs. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics: only a minority of women work in these sectors. 28 percent of global engineering graduates are women and only 22 percent of them work in the field of Artificial Intelligence. Women employed in technology face a 21 per cent pay gap – according to data from the International Labor Organization – and lower promotion rates: 52 women for every 100 men. Nearly half, 48 percent, report experiencing workplace harassment. Twenty-two per cent of women employed in STEM careers also confess that they have considered quitting their jobs altogether because of their treatment, UN Women documents read. Adding to the general picture are the damages of a public debate focused more on female disinterest in this kind of activity than on systems that exclude.

A technology for women. Technology looks like its creator: if women are cut off from innovation spaces, the consequence is that digital tools fail to meet their needs. Serious under-investment, for example, in digital tools that promote sexual and reproductive health is the result of decision-making processes that systematically exclude the female voice. By surfing less, women also produce less data than men. A global analysis of 133 AI systems from 1988 to the present found that 44.2 percent exhibited gender bias, 25.7 percent exhibited both gender and racial bias.

Lto gender-based violence online. Despite the prevalence, there is no universally accepted definition of technology-enabled gender-based violence. Today it can be understood as any act of abuse committed, assisted or aggravated by the use of technologies on the basis of gender. Although such acts often take place in the virtual sphere, they cause tangible damage: physical, sexual, psychological, social, political, economic. Online gender-based violence often forces women to self-censor, limiting their ability to engage and participate virtually. There Online violence is grossly underreported, with only 1 in 4 women reporting violent acts on the platform where they took place, and even fewer – 14 per cent – reporting them to the security forces.

Cross discrimination. For women facing cross-forms of discrimination, such as those of color, those with disabilities and LGBTIQ people, the risk is even higher. The same goes for women who have a public profile: journalists, politicians and women’s rights advocates. These individuals face significantly higher levels of hate speech than their male counterparts.