Title: Women and Mobile: Is It Really a Global Opportunity?
Authors: Anne-Ryan Heatwole with Katrin Verclas
Source: MobileActive.org
Date (published): 08/03/2010
Date (accessed): 08/03/2010
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
Today is International Women's Day and as we do every year, we are looking at the complex and intriguing issue of women and mobile technology around the world. A new report, “Women and Mobile: A Global Opportunity,” by the GSMA Development Fund, the Cherie Blair Foundation and Vital Wave Consulting, tackles the issue of the gender gap in mobile phone usage with a focus on low- and middle-income countries.

Title: ICT4D for Women: Opportunities and Risks
Author: Aparna Ray
Source: Global Voices Online
Date (published): 07/12/2009
Date (accessed): 07/12/2009
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
"As digital technologies open up new spaces and possibilities, there is a lot of optimism about empowerment of women, and alleviation of gender disparity...As far as women’s empowerment at the bottom of the pyramid goes, the buzz has been more centered on mobile phones than computer-related ICTs...The world of ICT and gender remains a complex one. Where we have seen positive strides towards gender equality, we have also seen ICTs provide another space for the further marginalisation of women, and scope for exerting greater control, power and perpetrating violence against them."

Title: Information and communication technologies for women's socio-economic empowerment
Authors: Samia Melhem and Nidhi Tandon
Pages: 96 pp.
Publisher: The World Bank Group
Date (published): 30/06/2009
Date (accessed): 20/11/2009
Type of information: research report
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML and pdf)
Abstract:
The purpose of this report is to provide the reader with an overview of some of the issues relating to women and Information and Communication Technology (ICTs) in the developing world in contrast to the developed world. Where possible, men's engagement will be added also as a contrast, but the focus of this working paper is on women, not gender. This is not to suggest that a focus on gender is not of value it is. But understanding the unique perspectives of women is the first step in addressing the larger issues of diversity and, specifically, gender, which has started to receive much attention from other organizations. This working paper is not intended to be the final document on the issue of women and ICTs, but a first opportunity to explore the issues with individuals less familiar with the on-going discussions. To that end, experts in the field may not find the depth of this paper as useful as some of those referenced at the end. Instead, this paper will serve to address the following points for the relative newcomer: 1) there is an enormous need for research to fully understand the issues of women, gender, and ICTs as the issues are very complex and the research is thin. Much of the information presented here is anecdotal or country specific, making generalizations a common challenge. The reader should be cautious of assumptions that need to be verified, but until the indicators are developed for broad reaching analysis, the authors are focusing on presenting concepts with the goal of encouraging exploration and discussion; 2) the research that exists relating to ICTs is often country specific, is more prevalent from developed than developing countries, and is often not disaggregated by gender; 3) the data source matters. According to most economists interviewed for this report, data on Internet use from market research firms, national government statistics, and industry organizations tend to show wider gender gaps than household survey data; and 4) gender differences are not apparent in all countries in all areas of ICTs; it is important to look at different contexts to tease out where barriers may exist (such as education, income levels, culture, human rights, etc.).