This
International Women’s Day, we are celebrating DigitALL: Innovation and
technology for gender equality. ICT and digital literacy are
transforming the quality of life and social well-being, powering growth and
development of individuals and communities. Over 90 percent of jobs worldwide
already have a digital component, and most jobs will soon require sophisticated
digital skills.
اضافة اعلان
Technology, however, is not
equal. The digital divide primarily affects those
already disadvantaged segments of the population, with digital exclusion
occurring due to gender, age, socioeconomic factors, place of residence
(urban/rural), disability, and levels of literacy.
"I don't feel like I own the phone; honestly, my sisters call and ask why I don't answer their calls, but the truth is that I don't have time; I'm always busy, and the phone is always with my kids."
Sparked by
the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, CARE Jordan has embarked on
a digital transformation of its services. To ensure that we do not exacerbate
the digital divide, or the negative impacts that it can be associated with —
such as access to services and personal safety — CARE Jordan conducted a gender
and inclusion analysis in an effort to assess the different needs of women,
men, youth, elderly, and people with disabilities and provide recommendations
on how to implement gender responsive and inclusive digital
programming. The analysis followed
a mixed methods approach incorporating both qualitative and quantitative
sources of evidence and targeted vulnerable Jordanian and refugee households.
Mobile
phone ownership, usageKey
findings on access, usage, and control include the following: Reflecting
national trends, our quantitative data shows high rates of both ownership and access to
mobile phones, as 95 percent of women
said they own a mobile phone, versus 98 percent of men. Moreover, 93 percent of
men and 88 percent of women stated that they use a mobile phone at least once a
day.
However,
our qualitative findings provide a more nuanced reality on the quality of
access with most focus group discussion (FGD) participants — both male and
female — agreeing that a woman’s phone is distinct from the phones used by
other members of the family. The mother’s phone is given to the children who
are studying or others, while men have priority over the control and
usage of their mobile phones.
"I don't feel like I own the phone; honestly, my sisters call and ask why I don't answer their calls, but the truth is that I don't have time; I'm always busy, and the phone is always with my kids."
"I
don't feel like I own the phone; honestly, my sisters call and ask why I don't
answer their calls, but the truth is that I don't have time; I'm always busy,
and the phone is always with my kids," said a female FGD participant in Zarqa.
Digital
dangersSocial and
gender norms also play a key role in access and digital literacy. The majority
of FGD respondents (from both sexes and different locations) stated that women’s
access to and ownership of mobile phones needs to be controlled and monitored
for safety reasons, particularly if they are unmarried. This speaks to other
global and national research which cites that digital technology poses as a
danger to women, with online harassment by strangers and by people they know,
including cyberdating and abuse by intimate partners, is a common occurrence.
The Sisterhood is Global Institute states that cyber-violence and harassing remarks are a
threat to almost 2.7 million female internet users in Jordan, including one
million underage girls.
"I’m
the youngest among my sisters; none of them had phones unless they were
married. My older sister attends the same university as me, and she has her own
mobile that my family can call us through," said another female FGD
participant from Zarqa.
Critical
awareness, ethical mobile engagementHowever,
controlling and monitoring access and usage results in exacerbating the digital
divide and cyber-violence and exploitation. Preventing girls and young females
from using technology and the internet is not a solution — equipping people
with the critical awareness they need to engage with these tools is.
Boys and girls typically show equal digital competence in primary school, however, by secondary school a gap starts to form which is not necessarily related to skills but rather perceptions of self-efficacy.
This critical
awareness needs to be complemented with ethical thinking which teaches youth to
engage with content and other users safely, wisely, and responsibly. This
formation needs to happen in schools and from an early age so that children and
youth are better equipped for this digital age.
For a
safer, more inclusive online worldThe gender
analysis also provided evidence around women being less likely to know how to
operate a smartphone, navigate the internet, and use social media compared to
men. Boys and girls typically show equal digital competence in primary school,
however, by secondary school a gap starts to form which is not necessarily
related to skills but rather perceptions of self-efficacy. Because of this
factor, and others such as domestic responsibilities, lack of mentorship,
expectations around educational achievements, and appropriate livelihood
streams, young women grow up participating less in digital technology.
Digital
skills need to be part of the Government of Jordan’s economic recovery, and
this must include the equitable inclusion of women and girls. CARE Jordan is a
big advocate for behavior change interventions on restrictive gendered norms,
which includes women and men of all generations. We need to work with schools,
parents, and the tech industry to embrace this inherent bias in technology and
work towards more inclusive behaviors. It is therefore important that women and
girls occupy this space, which has been created by men, so that it can better
reflect our needs, hopes, and wishes, as well as a safer online world.
Julia Maria Angeli is the Senior Gender and Program Design
Manager for CARE International in Jordan.
Read more Opinion and Analysis
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