Gender Information Technology And Developing Countries

In this landmark book, the UN-commissioned Gender Working Group outlines its policy proposals for national science and technology programs. Its goal is to ensure that women and men have equal access to and benefit equally from science and technology. The proposals are supported by essays written by distinguished scholars and experts.

This book explores the intricate relations of gender, health, and information technology in the context of factory work and a globalized economy. Providing rich theoretical explanations to gender, health, and information technology, it shows the impact of a globalized economy on the everyday lives of women workers in a selected manufacturing sector.

In the global discourse on ICTs, the concern so far has primarily been outsourcing and the loss of service sector jobs from the developed world. This book focuses, instead, on the positive aspects of the digital economy as they relate to women in the developing world. It illustrates—with case studies from Argentina, Morocco, India, Malaysia and the Philippines—how economic empowerment through the medium of ICTs can change the position of women within their families and the workplace, even in the face of uneven development processes. This timely volume, which is rooted in primary and original research, illuminates the gender-related facets of the emergent information society while raising key questions about the implications of the digital economy on women`s work and lives.

Based on the outcome of an extensive research project, this book features chapters based on original primary field research undertaken by academics & activists who have investigated situations within their own communities & countries.

This paper reviews how women in the developing world access and use information and communication technology (ICT). It examines the discourse and controversies surrounding the digital gender divide, including links to poverty and illiteracy. Major themes concerning women and ICTs are explored, such as women in the ICT workforce, how girls and women relate differently to ICT, and opportunities and barriers for women in science and technology in general. Current research relating to gender and ICT is often country-specific and is more prevalent in developed countries than in developing countries. This paper suggests where additional research is needed on barriers to women s entry and access to ICT. The overall objective of this paper is to influence policy dialogue around women and ICT for development by raising awareness of the digital gender divide. Economic opportunity for women in ICT will not be realized until policies address gender considerations and ensure that ICT investment contributes to more sustainable and equitable development.