Digitalisation for women

Globally both developed and developing countries have adopted digital technologies to speed up innovation and adapt to the ever-changing socio-economic environment. However, in most low-income countries, including Pakistan, women remain deprived of digital technologies, which impedes their ability to move up the social ladder. According to UN Women Pakistan, men are 52% more likely to be online as compared to women.

The disparity between men’s and women’s online presence signals that Pakistan’s path towards progress is rocky as women make up almost half the country’s population. Today, most social, and economic sectors have either moved entirely online or partially adopted digital modes of communication and operations. If women are not given access to digital technologies and training urgently, the country will lag in economic development. Along with improving girls’ access to literacy, digitalisation should be incorporated into curriculums to equip upcoming generations with adequate knowledge and skills. Many Pakistani female graduates struggle to find employment as their skills and knowledge have become obsolete. Many are either unaware of freelancing jobs or do not have access to digital devices or the internet.

The Digital Literacy Programme has tried to bridge this gap by training 1,680 women across Pakistan with a target of training at least 5,000 women by the end of 2022. However, much more needs to be done on a wider scale to improve women’s access to digital technologies, particularly those in rural or tribal areas. The Ministry of Education must collaborate with educational institutes along with non-governmental and civic organisations to form a strategy to incorporate digital training for both male and female students. These strategies must be rigorously implemented. To compete on a global scale, Pakistan must widen the scope of information technology and digitalisation and welcome more women in these fields.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 6^th, 2022.

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