As the world celebrates the International Day of the Girl Child, the United Nations Women (UN Women) has called for technology and education to be made more accessible for all girls.
The UN entity said it will continue to insist that girls’ right to education, including in information and communication technology (ICT) sector, is nonnegotiable.
The theme of this year’s International Day of the Girl Child, ‘Digital Generation, Our Generation’, highlights the diverse digital realities for girls.
‘Globally, 2.2 billion people below the age of 25 do not have internet access at home, with girls more likely to be cut off’, the UN Women statement read.
‘Those who do get online too often encounter cyberviolence; in a recent survey of 14,000 girls in 31 countries, more than half (58 percent) had been harassed and abused online.
‘From the teenage girls taking part in coding camps across Africa through to the members of the Afghan Girls Robotics Team showing the power of upholding girls’ right to education, girls have proven that they are more than ready to lead the digital transformation’.
Low internet access continues to affect Africa’s women and girls. In Uganda the gender gap in basic internet access stands at almost 43 percent while Ghana’s digital gender gap is around 5.8 percent.
The gender-gap for mobile internet in sub-Saharan Africa is 41 percent. This means that while only 29 percent of women have access to mobile internet, 70 percent of men do.
UN Women launched the Generation Equality Forum in June 2021 to bring together all stakeholders committed to gender equality in order to review progress and make concrete commitments to accelerate progress towards gender equality in five years.
A Global Acceleration Plan for Gender Equality has also been launched. It includes actions developed by the champions of the six Action Coalitions to be implemented by 2026.
‘We cannot afford for girls to be left out of the digital transformation. Not only do digital inclusion and literacy open new avenues for girls’ learning and earning, technology is a crucial enabler of the change girls are already leading around the world in areas such as gender equality, climate action and social justice’, UN Women added.
‘UN Women will continue to put girls at the heart of the digital revolution by supporting initiatives that include digital access and the development of digital skills; investments in feminist technology and innovation for social impact; new partnerships to build inclusive, transformative and accountable innovation ecosystems; and the design of new tools to prevent and eliminate online and tech-facilitated gender-based violence and discrimination’.
Girls, it is understood, are also less likely than boys to use and own devices, and gain access to tech-related skills and jobs.
‘That is why the wide diversity of girls’ voices was crucial to shaping the Global Acceleration Plan for Gender Equality that UN Women and partners launched in the context of the Generation Equality Forum (GEF)’, the statement said.
The UN entity called on stakeholders to work together to ensure that girls are connected, supported and empowered so they can co-lead the journey of digital transformation.
Source: UN Women
Photo source: UNICEF
