The Kenya Red Cross (KRC) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) have jointly called for the inclusion of women and girls in Kenya’s digital and technological advancement efforts as a measure for tackling humanitarian challenges.
Development Diaries reports that the call was made to commemorate International Women’s Day (IWD) 2023.
IWD is observed every 08 March to celebrate women’s social, economic, cultural and political achievements and renew the call to action for accelerating gender parity.
This year’s theme is ‘DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality’.
As Kenya faces the worst drought experienced in the last four decades, technologies such as portable ultrasound devices, cash transfers through mobile phones or mapping tools to identify vulnerable and at-risk women and girls can help facilitate more timely dispersal of life-saving assistance to those in need.
‘Because technology permeates every aspect of modern life, the digital divide has become a more urgent issue than ever before’, the organisations said in a statement.
‘In crisis and humanitarian settings, the digital divide can limit women’s access to life-saving information and services, effectively heightening their risks to maternal deaths, gender-based violence, and harmful practices such as female genital mutilation and child marriage’.
According to the Kenya Red Cross and UNFPA, women and girls must be included as co-creators in the design and development of new technology, to ensure that digital products equally reflect their realities.
They noted that the more women and girls are included in the creation of technology, the less vulnerable they will be.
Source: UNFPA
Photo source: UNFPA
