Women in Gomboussougou, a village in the Centre-Sud Region of Burkina Faso, are now for the first time in their lives able to participate in debates and municipal meetings in their community. These meetings are also broadcasted by the community radio started by women’s association Pag La Yiri.

Before, it was unthinkable for women to be actively involved in their community and participate in municipal meetings, debates and exchange of ideas. However, now they can attend any of the meetings on the agenda that is interesting to them.

The meetings are facilitated by local citizen journalists that have received training in reporting skills. All the discussions are being recorded in order to be broadcasted by Pag La Yiri radio. This is a radio station by rural women organisation Pag la Yiri, that is supported by IICD. The broadcasts are in five local languages and French. Local primary and secondary school teachers are also contributing to this radio project.

The municipal meetings and debates follow after a women week that was held in February. Listeners were invited to talk about topics related to women empowerment and gender issues in rural areas and could call to the radio station to answer quiz questions. With the support of IICD and Dutch capacity building organisation PSO, Pag la Yiri will continue to produce targeted content for women, as well as integrating gender topics in existing programmes.

You can watch a video report about the project in Gomboussougou here:

(Source: IICD)
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To commemorate this day, May 17 INICTEL-UNI held the International Forum "Women and girls in ICT". The event aims to promote the use of Information and Communication Technologies - ICTs on women and girls as a tool to integrate a gender equality perspective.

The event promoted by INICTEL-UNI, share the goals of ITU to encourages governments and institutions inviting girls and university students to spend a day on the premises or arrange visit programs observation ("shadowing") with female mentors in order to gain a better understanding of the opportunities offered by ICT.

This year, the World Day of Telecommunications and Information Society is especially devoted to the theme of "Women and girls in ICT", adopted by the ITU Council in 2010.

The celebration aims to ensure that vulnerable female half of the world progress towards equality. Gender equality is one of the main goals of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of the United Nations.

The forum will bring all the sectors involved in the field to encourage the adoption of policies and strategies to promote ICT related to the female gender and achieve the integration. It will feature panelists from the following institutions: Ministry of Transport and Communications, Ministry of Education, Department of Lima Council Engineers Association of Peru, National Council for Science, Technology and Innovation - CONCYTEC, National University of San Marcos, the Regulator in Telecommunications - OSIPTEL, among other important entities.

(Source: INICTEL – Perú)
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The 2012 World Telecommunication and Information Society Award was presented to three eminent personalities: President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of Argentina, Huawei Chairman Sun Yafang, and Academy Award winning actor Geena Davis, founder of the Geena Davis Institute of Gender in Media. The ceremony took place in Geneva to mark the 147th anniversary of the establishment of ITU in 1865.

The theme for the 2012 World Telecommunication and Information Society Day focuses on ‘Women and girls in ICT’. It is aimed at extending digital opportunities by providing avenues of advancement to professional women at the highest echelons of decision-making, and by encouraging young women to seek new careers within the sector.

In a message on the occasion of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, “On this World Telecommunication and Information Society Day, I call again for wide-ranging efforts to close both the digital divide and the gender gap.  All people must be able to make the best use of information and communications technology to help create the future we want”.

ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun Touré further reaffirmed that gender equality is a basic human right enshrined in the UN Charter, and one of the main objectives of the UN Millennium Development Goals.

“We are focusing our efforts this year on women and girls, using the power of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to provide new digital opportunities to end discrimination, and to empower women and girls to participate fully in society” Dr Touré said. “Girls and young women with ICT skills will find jobs that offer creativity, innovation, and entirely new ways of working. And encouraging girls into the technology industry will create a positive feedback loop – in turn creating inspiring role models for the next generation”.

One such role model, is represented by H.E. Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, President of Argentina who has spearheaded numerous digital initiatives such as the ‘Equal Connect Programme’ which aims to reduce the digital divide across Argentina’s educational system with a specific focus on developing quality digital content.

Ms Sun Yafang emphasized that positive role models and real gender equality are critical for the ICT industry. “The ICT market is full of uncertainties, requiring companies to be highly adaptive,” said Ms Sun. “In light of this, I have been promoting female manager development at Huawei. This programme gives preference to women in manager selection when all qualifications are equal. In this way, we can provide real development opportunities for our female employees.”

Ms Geena Davis, founder of the Geena Davis Institute of Gender in Media, has dedicated herself to advocating more positive representations of women and girls in the media and knows well the importance of reinforcing positive role models.

(Source: ITU Newsroom)
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The ExxonMobil Foundation and Cherie Blair Foundation for Women released new research demonstrating how mobile phones can help women entrepreneurs develop and grow their businesses. The analysis across three emerging countries -- Egypt, Nigeria and Indonesia -- concludes there are a number of mobile technology-based solutions which, if tailored and scaled commercially, could support the business needs of women entrepreneurs.

Based on the research findings, the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women will follow the study with a pilot program to provide women entrepreneurs with tailored mobile phone applications that will help them manage their businesses more effectively.

Research for the Mobile Value Added Services: A Business Growth Opportunity for Women Entrepreneurs report was conducted by the global management consultancy, Booz & Company. The report concluded that the extensive and ever-increasing penetration of mobile phones in developing and emerging markets presents a significant opportunity to women entrepreneurs who want to develop their micro businesses into flourishing small and growing enterprises. Mobile value added services are products offered through a mobile platform, such as text messaging and multimedia message services.

"We already know that when mobile technology is properly incorporated into daily use, it can address an ever-increasing range of needs", said Cherie Blair, founder of the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women. "Yet many of these technologies are not designed with a woman entrepreneur in mind. This groundbreaking research and subsequent pilot program will identify the technology that is most effective for women entrepreneurs and will provide women with new opportunities to maximize the effectiveness and reach of their businesses".

"In recent years, we have seen mobile phones evolve from a convenience to an essential business tool, enabling entrepreneurs to address pressing business challenges, increase access to new markets and operate more efficiently", said Suzanne M. McCarron, president of the ExxonMobil Foundation. "Yet all too often, women entrepreneurs around the world lack access to the technology and resources needed to succeed. Expanding the effective uses of mobile technology can help women earn more income and lead to more prosperity for them, their families, their communities and their countries".

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(Source: Market Watch)

Global leaders from the US, Europe, Africa and Asia joined together today to debate and define a roadmap that will help break down barriers and overturn outmoded attitudes in a bid get more girls into technology-related studies and careers.

A high-level dialogue held at New York’s Institute of International Education and hosted by the International Telecommunication Union, the UN-specialized agency for information and communication technology, identified misguided school-age career counselling, the popular media’s ‘geek’ image of the technology field, a dearth of inspirational female role models, and a lack of supportive frameworks in the home and workplace as factors that, together, tend to dissuade talented girls from pursuing a tech career.

Inspired by the tremendous dedication of NGOs, universities, government agencies, industry and others around the world in organizing Girls in ICT Day events today, participants sketched our a basic blueprint for more successful approaches to attracting school-age girls to the fast-evolving technology field, and agreed to work together to change attitudes and boost female tech enrolment rates.

In his welcoming remarks to an invited audience of over 200 gender, education and technology experts, ITU Secretary-General Dr Hamadoun Touré said: “Over the coming decade, there are expected to be two million more ICT jobs than there are professionals to fill them. This is an extraordinary opportunity for girls and young women – in a world where there are over 70 million unemployed young people”.

ITU’s Dr Touré closed the event with a call for partners to collaborate with ITU on a three-year ‘Tech Needs Girls’ campaign focused around four ‘Es’: empowerment, equality, education and employment. “This is a tremendous opportunity for us all, working together as partners, to make a real difference”, he said.

‘Girls in ICT Day’ is a new annual event on the UN calendar, and is celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday in April. It was established through a formal Resolution at ITU’s four-yearly Plenipotentiary Conference in 2010.

(Source: ITU Newsroom)
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How can mobile communication help improve the quality of education? A Nokia smartphone will go to the owner of the best idea submitted to the fifth phase of the Education for All (EFA) Crowdsourcing Challenge organized by UNESCO, Nokia and the Pearson Foundation.

Starting on 12 March, and for a month thereafter, education and mobile learning stakeholders are all invited to participate by submitting mobile communication ideas for helping achieve EFA Goal n°5 that calls for the elimination of gender disparities in primary and secondary education by 2005, and the achievement of gender equality in education by 2015, with a focus on ensuring girls’ full and equal access to and achievement in basic education of good quality. Participants will also be invited to vote or comment on other ideas.

Several hundred proposals were generated during the first four phases of the EFA Crowdsourcing Challenge, which explored ways of using mobile communication to potentially help attain literacy, to contribute to achieving universal primary education, to address youth and adult learning needs, and to improve the quality of education.

To submit an idea, participants only need to click on the Create an Idea link to the right of the gender challenge introductory paragraph.

The winner of the fifth phase, who will be chosen by an expert panel of judges, will receive a Nokia smartphone. She or he will also get a chance to win a US$ 3,000 prize as well as a library of children’s books worth US$ 3,000, which will be donated to a non-profit organisation of the winner’s choice. Moreover, the best ideas from the EFA Crowdsourcing Challenge will be developed into concrete projects by Nokia and other project partners.

(Source: UNESCO)
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This study examines how access to and use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) are transforming the economic opportunities available to poor and low-income women in India by promoting their entrepreneurial activity. What types of initiatives support small and medium enterprises for women, and through which ICTs? What factors shape a positive connection between ICTs and women’s business success? What barriers have been lifted and what opportunities realized? What types of impact are ICT-based initiatives having on women, their businesses and beyond? What promising pathways are being shaped, and what channels have yet to be explored?

The larger goal of this research is to identify how technology can be leveraged to create and transform entrepreneurial opportunities for women across the globe. The insights presented here are intended to inform programs, policies and investments that encourage women to start, strengthen and sustain businesses by adopting and using ICTs. Recommendations aim to provide direction for stakeholders—development actors, governments, and especially the private sector—on how they can support women’s entrepreneurship through ICT platforms, products and services.

(Source: International Center for Research on Women - ICRW) 
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March 8th is International Women's Day and to mark the occasion, the GSMA mWomen Programme has released a study called "Striving and Surviving – Exploring the Lives of Women at the Base of the Pyramid". Drawn from 2,500 interviews with women (aged 16-64 in both rural and urban areas) living on less that $2 a day in Egypt, India, Papua New Guinea, and Uganda, the report looks at how mobile technology influences the way women approach health, economic development, and family relationships, and what mobile operators can do to reach more low-income women.

The report is divided into three parts; part one looks at the social, cultural, and economic factors that women at the base of the economic pyramid face in their daily lives, part two looks at the role of mobile technology in their lives, and part three looks at how technology can be used to further reach low-income women.
Some of the statistics pulled from the report show that when asked what the key benefits of mobile would be:

• 80% reported being connected to friends and family
• 58% said it would be useful in an emergency
• 40% said it would cut down on travel time
• 15% believed it would help them feel secure
• 93% reported that mobile phones made them feel safer, while the same proportion particularly valued being connected to friends and family.
• 41% reported that owning a mobile had helped them increase their income or their professional prospects
• 85% of mobile owners reported a greater feeling of independence
  

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(Source: Mobile Active)

Survivors of the 2010 devastating earthquake in Haiti have this week started receiving cash subsidies through the first-ever mobile money transfer system in support of post-disaster housing reconstruction, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) reported.

More than 2,000 mobile money transfers are planned in the next three months to 1,000 low-income families receiving subsidies totalling $500 to purchase construction materials such as cement, iron and wood at selected project-certified stores. The initiative is part of the ‘Community Support Centres for House Repairs’, a partnership between UNDP and the Government of Haiti.

Commissioned by UNDP and developed by Digicel, one of the country’s largest cell phone service providers, the mobile telephone cash transfers are helping boost financial inclusion in Haiti, where nearly two-thirds of the population has access to mobile phones, but only 10 per cent have bank accounts.

Beneficiaries can also access a mobile phone checking account, which is a safer method of keeping cash, reduces financial transaction costs, improves users’ ability to save and helps bring more people into the formal financial sector.

“Mobile phone vouchers create additional security and convenience here in Haiti, especially for women, who might feel more vulnerable when carrying large sums of money”, said Jessica Faieta, Senior UNDP Country Director for Haiti. She stressed that more than 40 per cent of Haitian households are led by women.

“With safer housing conditions, this initiative will also encourage the permanent return of camp residents to their neighbourhoods and repaired homes”, she added.

The Support Centres, known locally by their French acronym as CARMEN, have been empowering quake-affected communities in Port-au-Prince and the western town of Léogâne to directly take charge of house repairs, with engineering assessments and construction training.

Four thousand families have already registered to participate in the project, benefiting 12,000 people. Five thousand participants have been trained in construction techniques and 2,000 damaged houses have already been evaluated, according to UNDP.

(Source: United Nations)
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The start of the End User Computing learnership programme which will equip 34 young women in Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality was celebrated by the Progressive Women’s Movement of South Africa (PWMSA) and Bytes People Solutions (BPS)

This follows the signing of an MoU between the three primary partners PWMSA, Bytes People Solutions and the Media, Advertising, Information and Communication Technologies Sector Training Authority (MICT Seta) to train 180 young women in ICT in six municipalities. The municipalities are Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, Metsweding, Sedibeng, Wesrand and Johannesburg Central.

Funding for the programme was provided by the Media, Advertising, Information and Communication Technologies Sector Training Authority (MICT Seta). The group of women from the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality are the second to start the programme following the commencement of the training in the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality in July 2011.

The learners are offered employment utilizing the workplace networks of the three partners. Learners are employed for one year, during which they will receive workplace training and coaching.

Bytes People Solutions, a company in the Bytes Technology Group, wholly owned by JSE-listed Altron, has a long-standing track record in ICT training, with more than 800 people a year passing through its doors, 59% of them female.

Dr. Ramokgopa, who is also a working committee member of the PWMSA and convener of the Gauteng Chapter, said that the programme had attracted young women who strongly believed that it would enhance their employment prospects. "The most important partners in this programme are the participants themselves", she said. "There is a high ICT illiteracy rate among women in the country, and this group of graduates is helping to address that. It’s vital that we continue to educate females in this industry as they play a key role in economic development”.

(Source: SkillsPortal)
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Mostly when the people think of the Internet, there is a male predominance in most of the questions, especially in manufacturing and invention of new technologies. Previously, the role of women in the virtual world was not very significant. However, over the last years, this thinking has changed. Regarding this case, the CPBR5 # invited to six recognized ladies to discuss and review this issue: Julia Petit, Lemos Nina, Penatti Giovana, Lola Aronovich, Daniela Dantas, and the mediated of Fernanda Pineda.

Julia is a blogger, host of the "allied base" in the GNT and music producer. Nina is a journalist and writes for the magazine "TPM". Daniela Dantas, writes in the blog "Girls and girls." Lola is a professor at the Federal University of Ceará and blogger on "Lola Post Write." Giovana is editor of "YouPIX" and writer in the blog "Girl Geeks". Fernanda is an actress, producer and blogger "Fake Doll."

For guests, the myth of the "Club of Little Lulu" is still too prevalent among women. "Women like to talk to each other, not only because of similar issues, but why this woman understands the universe", Says Julia. Lola believes that what happens is the opposite. There are more "boys club” that the "Little Lulu" and those have more prejudice. The teacher said most of the jokes come from men and you see that kind of attitude as a child.

The younger audience, represented by Daniela blogger, says children are participating in public opinion polls of the blog, and which is predominantly female. Thinking about the content area, Julia believes in the feminine nature of talking more and in the issues addressed.

The guests believe in the expansion of the public information, what happens in recent years. With the rise of blogs and the rise of Internet access, women began to seek more information of interest in the web. However, this flood of content consumption aggravated the problem in people. Previously, they knew that they know not so much. Today, the pressure implied by the corporate media is so great that people end up buying the pieces before the main product, it is not necessary. "The lack of filtering of information is one of the main culprits of this desire to buy en masse", says Giovanna.

At the end of the talk, the guests were pleased with the progress of women in technology and fear of lack of knowledge of women, the tools used for work. And that's why Campus Party always tries to bring together diverse segments such as robotics and digital arts, for example, for a week, the participant may have contact with these areas and an open mind to new content.

(Source: Campus Party – Brasil)
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In the villages of Nepal, the community radio programme Sajha Awaj (common voice) allows discussions on issues of importance to the women of the community through transmission to more than 160 community radio stations.  The programme is produced by the Association of Community Radio Broadcasters Nepal (ACORAB), a grantee of UN Women’s Fund for Gender Equality. The programme delves into issues ranging from addressing cultural malpractices faced by rural women — such as being shunned during their monthly menstrual cycle — to women’s role in local politics and building a local motorway which is essential for rural women traders.

In Latin America, organizations like Puntos de Encuentro in Nicaragua and Asociacion de Comunicadores Sociales Calandria and Movimiento Manuela Ramos in Peru, provide critical public forums  for discussions on effective ways to end violence against women, on women’s access to justice and legal support through radio programming. Radio projects also form an important channel of information in post-conflict Iraq and Nepal. These initiatives are supported by the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, managed by UN Women. Established in 1996, the Fund is the only multilateral grant-making mechanism exclusively devoted to supporting efforts to end violence against women and girls.

All these efforts have one thing in common — the power of the radio. According to UNESCO, radio can be found in the homes of 75 percent of the world population. For billions of people living in rural areas, or as urban poor, access to information is limited. Disconnected from the information gateway due to poverty, low literacy, limited electricity connections and access to communication technologies such as computers and internet, radio is often the only medium available. Run on batteries, lightweight, mobile and inexpensive, the popularity of the radio medium remains high, amongst the six billion people who have access to it worldwide.

Community radio uses the power of the medium, but redefines it to give a voice to the most marginalized communities. It creates a non-commercial platform, where ordinary people in rural communities, often the women of the community, own and produce the content they hear on the radio.

(Source: UN Women)
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InfoDev have launched m2Work, a global online competition aiming to tap the job-creation potential of mobile phones. In addition to a total of US$ 40,000 in cash prizes, the challenge offers business mentorship to entrepreneurs with good ideas for mobile microwork. Microwork refers to small digital tasks people can perform anywhere to supplement their income.

Job creation is a priority of the World Bank and the m2Work challenge shows a novel approach to addressing this challenge. Currently, most microwork requires access to computers; m2Work aims to transfer micro tasks to mobile phones, which could have broad job creating potential given the five billion cellular phones in the developing world. m2Work is hosted by the World Bank’s infoDev and Nokia’s Ideas Project, and supported by UKaid and the government of Finland.

infoDev, a global partnership program in the World Bank, uses its network of Mobile Applications Labs (mLabs) and business incubators to help tech entrepreneurs at all stages, as part of our strategy to create sustainable jobs. The m2Work challenge aims to showcase the best ideas and spark a global discussion about mobile microwork.

The contest’s jury, which includes the World Bank’s Chief Information Officer, Ms. Shelley Leibowitz, representatives of Nokia, academia and the wider technology investment sector, will award individual prizes based on each idea’s potential development impact, innovativeness and feasibility. Submissions are accepted through April 2.

(Source: mWomen)
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ITU has launched a new web Portal focused on helping girls and women access training, job opportunities and career information in the fast-growing information and communication (ICT) sector.
The portal is designed to help girls and young women aged 11-25 prepare for and pursue a technology career, providing links to scholarships, training and internships, ICT contests and awards, tech camps, online girls’ networks and other programmes that will give them a boost in entering what has become a largely male-dominated sector.

Turning girls on to technology
With computer and information systems professionals consistently ranked among the top 20 best-paying jobs – on a par with surgeons, orthodontists, airline pilots and lawyers – ITU is working to attract more young women and girls into the ICT sector, encouraging them to expand their horizons and urging their teachers and parents to cast aside old-fashioned negative attitudes.

Experts contend that girls and young women are ‘turned off’ careers in technology by a range of factors – from the profession’s ‘geek’ image to entrenched notions that technology careers are unfeminine, too challenging, or just plain boring.

“Research consistently shows that girls tend to choose careers where they feel they can ‘make a difference’ – healthcare, education, medicine. With this new portal, we’re trying to show them that there’s much more to ICTs than writing computer code”, said Dr Hamadoun Touré, ITU Secretary-General. “As we move towards an ICT-based Knowledge Society, the rise of apps and the explosion in telemedicine, remote learning systems and research and development make the ICT industry the most exciting choice any young person can make. We are entering unchartered waters of creativity, innovation and entirely new ways of working, interacting and learning. I hope our new portal will serve as a showcase to attract the many talented girls and young women in countries worldwide to this booming sector”.

What does the portal contain?
The Girls in ICT Portal houses some 400 programmes, including over 100 scholarship programmes and an equal number of contests and awards, some 60 training and internship opportunities, over 100 online networks offering career support and mentoring, as well as tech camps and Girls in ICT Day activities

(Source: ITU Newsroom)
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Encouraging more jobs for women in mobile phone retail and telecoms industries across 11 emerging countries could help families and boost revenues for mobile companies, suggests a new study released in Dubai.

Spearheaded by the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, the study was conducted in cooperation with 14 mobile operators across the Middle East, Africa and Asia and comes more than a year after a study found that 300 million women globally do not have access to mobile phones.

Cherie Blair, foundation founder and wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, presented the findings yesterday at the Middle East Telco World Summit.

"I think it's all about showing what women can do, about showing that women actually can contribute to the economy and still fulfill their desires to be a wife and mother and also be respectful to their local community", Blair told Gulf News in an interview.

"Here in the Middle East we have more educated women coming forward, this will allow them to put that education to use and the mobile phone allows them to do that", she said.

Blair said the study by her foundation was undertaken following an initial study done in 2010 (Report) that showed encouraging women to enter the workforce could yield up to $13 billion in revenue for mobile operators.

(Source: Gulfnews)
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Recently, Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) Peru launched via Facebook, a useful source of information for women: "Being a Woman", which has the objective to inform women on what it means to be female. There is possible to find the answers to frequently asked questions that are commonly performed by women, thinking of their benefits, health and beauty, among other interesting topics.

To answer all kinds of inquiries with regard to women, it will be available a health specialist about sexuality. The expert also will absolve consultations on contraception, menopause, fertility, among other subjects that the visitors of the page are interested on. In addition it will provide tips and contests via this popular social network. In this regard Dr. Monica Naranjo Cáceres, gynecology specialist, said that this is important means of informing our female population, starting obviously with the teenagers and covers all women of childbearing age, to enjoy a full sex life and a personal. The link is www.facebook.com/sermujer.pe

"Women today should be better informed and know more about what it means to be a woman", noted the specialist.

(Source: Perumagazin)

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The partnership will take place through the GSMA mWomen Programme Global Development Alliance and will enable women to effectively use mobile phones to access life-enhancing information, networks and services – such as banking, education and healthcare.

Studies have shown that a 10 percent increase in mobile phone use has led to a 1.2 percent increase in gross domestic product (GDP) in low- and middle-income countries. However, research shows that women in the developing world are 21 percent less likely than men to own a mobile phone.

Secretary Clinton noted at the launch of the GSMA mWomen Programme in October 2010 that, “investing in women’s progress is the most direct and effective way to invest in progress economically and socially globally.”

“For 300 million women in low- and middle- income countries, mobile technology is still out of reach. “It’s not simply because it’s too expensive . . . but it’s because of an array of economic and social barriers, from a lack of literacy to a lack of income to the all-too-common belief that cell phones afford more freedom to women than they deserve,” said Secretary Clinton.

Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd said that a wide range of social and economic benefits can be delivered by extending mobile phone ownership to women. “Mobile phones can provide women living in remote and rural areas with access to bank accounts and formal credit”, said Mr. Rudd.

“In Pakistan, text messaging has been used to deliver basic literacy and numeracy classes. In India, texts have been used to provide agricultural commodity prices at markets, helping women to get the best prices for their produce”.

Today four out of five mobile phone connections are in the developing world. Through mobile technology, the public and private sectors are able to engage with individuals in new and innovative ways to achieve development objectives and drive economic growth.

The Global Development Alliance is a USAID mechanism bringing together the core competencies of the private and public sector. The GSMA mWomen Programme Global Development Alliance is being implemented by the GSMA, leveraging the expertise, distribution and resources of its global mobile industry membership, including the 31 GSMA mWomen Working Group members who have each committed their company to help reduce the mobile phone gender gap.

(Source: mWomen)
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Games for Change, a social enterprise that creates video and mobile games that engage players with global social issues, is in the midst of developing games that promote the rights of women in different ways through its partnership with the women’s right movement Half the Sky.

Half the Sky began as a bestselling book written by award-winning journalists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn that inspired readers to join in a movement against the oppression of women and girls worldwide. It has turned into a transmedia project that includes a TV series, websites, video modules, and social impact Facebook and mobile games. Games for Change’s partnership with Half the Sky began in 2009 at the 6th Annual Games for Change Festival.

Co-president of Games for Change, Asi Burak, is most noted for developing Peacemaker, a game that confronts the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where players strive to bring peace to the region using real news footage and facts from real events. The entrepreneur recently provided his insights on how gaming can change the world for the better in an interview with Inc.com, and hopes to create an impact game that’s as popular as Farmville.

According to Burak, Games for Change is currently working on two types of video games for Half the Sky. The first, operated through Facebook, focuses on users in the U.S. and raises awareness on girls’ issues while encouraging support for various NGOs involved in the movement. The second kind of game is one that girls in India play that helps them understand their rights. For example, one game is designed to educate young girls on how to avoid and treat intestinal worms (a common problem among young girls in the country), and another informs girls on maternal health.

Burak believes Games for Change and similar efforts can create a marketplace for these “impact games” where huge numbers of people play them, ultimately leading to a positive social payoff.

(Source: GBI – USAID)
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Pakistan, like many other developing countries, has seen an explosion in its mobile communications market in recent years. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) reported a 65.4 percent mobile teledensity (The number of mobile phones in use for every 100 individuals) and a total of 108,894,518 subscribers in June 2011. The number of subscribers has increased threefold since 2005.

Measuring the number of mobile phone users is challenged by shared use of phones, those who own more than one SIM card, and the ownership of SIM cards by non-phone owners. While the number of mobile subscribers is officially 108 million, according to the PTA, those with phone access might be higher and conversely those with actual mobile phone ownership might be lower.

This dilemma is illustrated in studies of mobile phone access and use by gender in Pakistan. According to the Pakistan Institute of Public Opinion (PIPO) 2010 Media Report, there seems to be a large gender disparity in mobile phone ownership. However, the 2010 Mobile Life Pakistan Report produced by the Gilani Research Foundation measures regular use as opposed to ownership. Very different results appear.

In addition to gender, James Linton Williams, founder of the Popular Engagement Policy Lab (PEPL) talks about similar disparities across income groups on a recent PEPL report. He cites 2009 survey data from LIRN Asia, where they surveyed the poorest 60 percent of Pakistan’s population. The study shows that, of the 109 million people in that bracket, only 40.33 million own mobile phones, but 104.64 million (96 percent of the 109 million) had used a phone in the three months prior to the survey.

Regarding mobilephone activities, most Pakistani mobile users use their mobile phones to make calls, according to the 2010 Mobile Life Pakistan Report. Another activity, known as missed calling, is also popular. This involves dialing a number, and then immediately when the calls gets through, disconnecting it after 1-2 rings and before the receiver picks up in order to save both parties from being charged incoming or outgoing rates. Many Pakistanis might have predetermined signals that these missed calls give (for example: a missed call could mean the caller will be home in 10 minutes, or has reached a destination, or will be here to pick you up). In general it is a free way to communicate.

(Source: AudienceScapes)
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UNICEF and UN Women have a launched an online centre to provide evaluators with resources to design and manage evaluations that integrate equity, human rights and gender equality.

The section of Gender Equality and Human Rights Responsive Evaluations Community is administered by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women). The purpose and the role of evaluation in UN Women is to enhance accountability, inform decision-making and contribute to learning on the best ways to achieve women’s empowerment and gender equality through operational and normative work.

The consideration of gender and human rights in the evaluation practice involves the integration of gender equality and human rights dimensions in all steps of the evaluation process and involves the analysis of the effects of the interventions in enhancing or negatively affecting gender equality and the empowerment of women. In this context, gender analysis frameworks and feminist and transformative paradigms have key implications for gender and human rights responsive evaluation.

This section aims to promote knowledge on Gender Equality and Human Rights responsive evaluations by providing access to various resources including publications, reports and information on training opportunities. Also through this section evaluation practitioners can access Gender Equality and Human Rights responsive evaluations communities of practice and networks.

In addition, the section provides access to UN Women Manual on Gender Equality and Human Rights Responsive Evaluation a practical guide to help those initiating, managing and/or using gender equality and human rights responsive evaluations. It is intended for all international development professionals who deliver or manage programmes and projects. The guide provides direction, advice and tools for every step in the evaluation process. It contains tools to aid in the process and references to provide a greater depth of information on specific topics and issues.

Access to this virtual tool here

(Source: My M&E)

A Kenyan is among two innovators awarded $250,000 (approximately Sh25,000,000) to develop pre-natal care solutions.

Two projects, one using cell phones to deliver to expectant mothers in Kenya electronic vouchers for pre-natal care and transportation, the other aimed at promoting maternal and child health in northern Nigeria, will receive $250,000 grants from the Saving Lives at Birth Partnership.

Both projects were motivated by the childbirth-related deaths of important women in the lives of the African-based project innovators.

Although Kenyan Sam Agutu and Nigerian Aminu Gamawa come from different countries and backgrounds, they share a common passionate commitment - to save the lives of women giving birth and guarantee infants a healthy start.

Agutu's sister died in childbirth on the way to the hospital. Gamawa's mother died in childbirth too. Both men say the deaths were avoidable if better care had been available. They've channeled that devastating loss into powerful motivation to improve the odds for women and their babies.

Sam Agutu's Kenyan group, Changamka Microhealth based in Nairobi, is proposing e-vouchers delivered through cell phones to encourage women to seek care during their pregnancy and at birth.

In remote areas health care costs and distance to clinics are barriers for women. The e-vouchers can be used to pay for pre-natal care and transportation.

"Research shows that not receiving adequate care is a leading cause of maternal mortality in the developing world. Mothers who attend their required ante-natal visits and who deliver in hospital stand an infinitely greater chance of surviving than those who do not" said Mr. Agutu. "We will use Saving Lives at Birth's support to validate the effectiveness of e-vouchers, an SMS informational campaign and a transport subsidy in encouraging pregnant women to seek health care".

The Development Research and Projects Centre in Nigeria is relying on persuasion and experience to change attitudes of some Islamic opinion leaders in the country's Muslim northern states.

Each program will receive a $250,000 seed grant from the Saving Lives at Birth partnership, which includes Grand Challenges Canada, USAID, the Government of Norway, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Bank.

(Source: Business daily Africa)
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Kenyan women have been at the forefront of some recent newsworthy ICT innovations such as iCow and M-Farm. Dinfin Mulupi covers their success stories and finds that their entrepreneurship might help open doors for disadvantaged women across Kenya.

Farmers in Kenya are benefiting from two technological innovations that have earned praise within the international development community. Called iCow and M-Farm, they help small farmers to manage their herds, access market information and connect with agricultural extension services. Both products were also developed by women, who have made their mark in the Kenyan technology sector in recent years.

The iCow is a mobile phone app for cattle farmers created by Su Kahumbu-Stephanou, an organic farmer who was inspired by her own challenges and experiences. Currently used in 27 Kenyan countries, iCow was created initially to help farmers track the fertility cycle of their cows, but it now incorporates other services like helping farmers gain access to veterinary officers and animal feeds. It also collects and stores farmers' milk and breeding records and sends farmers best practices for dairy management. The innovation received first prize in the 2010 Apps4Africa competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

Women's successes in the ICT sector come amid strong investor interest in Kenyan tech innovators generally, with an increasing number of start-ups receiving funding. Meanwhile, widespread penetration of mobile phones in Kenya and Africa as a whole has created a brisk market for mobile apps and other products and services.

Government efforts to start digital centers across the country also are broadening access to technologies. These "pasha centers" (pasha means "inform" in Swahili) will have between 10 and 20 computers connected to the internet, as well as fax machines and printers, among other equipment. The centers will provide a wide range of electronic services to the community including e-mail, e-learning and e-banking.

(Source: AudienceScapes)
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The rapid growth and evolution of the mobile sector has had a huge impact on our social interactions and on economic progress worldwide. In emerging markets in particular, the industry continues to see massive expansion as an increasing proportion of the population becomes connected. The Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are diversifying their products and services to generate additional sources of income. This growth has created lots of opportunities for employment and entrepreneurial activity. However, in many parts of the world, women have been less able to seize these opportunities due to a variety of factors that reflect underlying gender inequality – for example, lower levels of education, lack of start-up capital, restrictive gender roles and lack of confidence.

One of the most direct ways in which women entrepreneurs can take part in the growth of the mobile industry is by joining the retail channels of MNOs as sellers of mobile products (primarily of airtime, but also of more sophisticated offerings in markets where MNOs provide higher-end mobile-enabled services such as Mobile Money). MNOs have some of the most extensive retail channels, with coverage extending to remote rural areas. MNO retail channels can also be useful conduits for providing other important services such as aid distribution, education and health services, and these can offer further economic opportunities for women entrepreneurs.

In practice, the targeted inclusion of women entrepreneurs in the retail networks of MNOs is an idea that has been gaining currency for some time. Several leading MNOs have specific programmes in place to appoint women as retail network partners in their respective markets. However, to date, no research study has been conducted to investigate the benefits of including women entrepreneurs in the retail networks of MNOs as a distinct model.

This study aims to demonstrate through its findings that including women entrepreneurs at all levels of the ‘mobile value chain’ (MVC) makes commercial and social sense for both, MNOs and women entrepreneurs. To support this argument, they have looked at how women entrepreneurs are being brought into the MVC across 11 markets.

See Full Report

(Source: Cherie Blair Foundation)

The Technical Committee on Communications Strategy for the Colombian state on Prevention and Gender-based violence "Women you have rights" invite all the agencies, organizations, media and general public to respond through social networks the question: "What is your contribution to write a story without violence against women?" in commemoration of the "November 25th, the International Day of No Violence against women".

The appointment is in Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, online media and web site www.mujertienesderechos.org. We hope that 10,000 women and men manifest through social networks on not violence against women using the label (hashtag) # mujertienesderechos and making that November 25, International Day of No Violence Against Women" the most mentioned theme in social networks (trend topic).

The ICT Ministry will develop simultaneously the # HoraTIC in the Plaza de Bolivar in Bogota and will be projected on a screen messages that you receive via twitter. The # HoraTIC is a space for citizen participation through Twitter account of the ICT Ministry (@ Ministerio_TIC), which seeks to generate discussion on topics related to information technologies and communications.

(Source: MINTIC)
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The system is fairly simple. A user registers for mobile phone banking with their service provider and is given a mobile "e-wallet" - an application on their SIM card that is linked to their phone number.

When the user wants to pay for services or transfer money to someone they simply have to go to an agent and pay the desired amount, which is loaded onto the "e-wallet". The payment is made and the recipient can withdraw the money from an agent. There are various agents affiliated with the mobile service providers across the country, making the service easily accessible to those in rural areas.

It is a convenient system that no longer limits the women’s movements. Thelma Nare, and the women in her co-operative make regular trips to Bulawayo to sell produce, like Mopani worms. This means that they miss paying their monthly subscriptions.

Mobile network giant Econet Wireless, which has five million subscribers, introduced the service in September and was quickly followed by its competitors, the government-owned NetOne and Telecel.

These service providers have affiliated agents throughout the country, which include the Zimbabwe Post Office, supermarkets and stores where people like Nare can access their funds."I was in the city and was told about the use of mobile phones to transfer money. When I told the other women in my money club, it seemed to be the answer to our problems", she said.

The model is borrowed from Kenya’s pioneering M-Pesa, which has experienced phenomenal growth from 20,000 users at its launch in 2007 to an estimated 14 million this year.

Girlie Moyo, 40, another member of Nare’s money club said that in the past the women had to gather under a tree to make physical contributions. Now, the convenience of the mobile transfers means "we can co-ordinate our contributions without concerns about distance".

While money transfer services sprouted across the country in the aftermath of the mass exodus of Zimbabweans to work across the world, the "bureaux de change" remained in the cities. So those in the rural areas were forced to rely upon undependable and expensive cross-border transporters who demand up to 20 percent of the total amount being sent.

Mobile banking seems to be the best solution for rural Zimbabweans, as a report released on Nov. 9 by the Groupe Speciale Mobile Association (GSMA) found that Africa has the fastest growing mobile phone market in the world and is the world's second-largest mobile market by connections, after Asia.
The GSMA report predicts that there will be more than 735 million subscribers in Africa by the end of 2012.

(Source: Inter Press Service)
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Girl Hub Rwanda on Wednesday launched Ni Nyampinga, a new girl-focused magazine and radio show, so as to empower teenage girls. Girl Hub is a joint venture between the Nike Foundation and the UK Department for International Development (DFID) to ensure that girls in developing countries are involved in the design and implementation of policies and programs that affect them.

Jessica Thornley, brand manager for Girl Hub’s Rwanda office, explained that the project is designed to provide adolescent girls with tools that will enable them to exploit their potential while strengthening self-belief and make good decisions for themselves.

“Ni Nyaminga is about fostering a culture for girls that gives them the space, time and tools needed to experience their teenage years in the most positive way”, Thornley explained. “We believe the magazine and the radio programs will be great motivators for girls, give them greater voice, while also having a positive impact on their parents and brothers”.

Thornely added that the new platform for Rwandan teenage girls will be connecting them with other girls by offering them role model stories and advice to share experiences and inspire them with great ideas for future improvement. The bi-monthly magazine will cover topics such as Rwandan culture, health, English, development and economic empowerment, while the weekly radio program will be hosted by a team of Rwandan girl journalists who will make shows about issues that matter most to them and their peers.

Both platforms will prompt audiences for feedback and input through social media, mobile and suggestion boxes in the community, encouraging girls to connect with Ni Nyampinga, each other and decision makers, mentioned the platform designers.

The magazine will initially be freely distributed in Kigali as well as the Northern and Southern provinces at the end of November, and nationwide in early 2012; while commencing November 26, the radio show will be broadcast on five radio stations countrywide.

Girl Hub’s Rwanda office is part of initiative already operating in Ethiopia and the north of Nigeria among other countries so as to unleash the ‘Girl Effect’ – offering the chance to grow into healthy mothers, active citizens and educated members of their societies and transform their families, communities and nations along the way.

(Source: The Rwanda Focus News Paper)
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"This year’s International Day of Rural Women falls at a time of heightened awareness of the important contribution women are making to social progress.[...] I call on all partners to recognize the contribution of rural women to our world, and to help them do even more for our shared future", said Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The first International Day of Rural Women was observed on 15 October 2008. This new international day, established by the General Assembly in its resolution 62/136 of 18 December 2007, recognizes “the critical role and contribution of rural women, including indigenous women, in enhancing agricultural and rural development, improving food security and eradicating rural poverty”.

Rural women play a critical role in the rural economies of both developed and developing countries. In most parts of the developing world they participate in crop production and livestock care, provide food, water and fuel for their families, and engage in off-farm activities to diversify their families’ livelihoods. In addition, they carry out vital functions in caring for children, older persons and the sick.

The theme for the 56^th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (27 February – 9 March, 2012) is: "The empowerment of rural women and their role in poverty and hunger eradication, development and current challenges".

 (Source: United Nations Organization)

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The National Strategy "Women Have Rights", which leads the Ministry of Information and Communications Technologies (MINTIC), the Presidential Office for Equality for Women, the Presidential Agency for Social Action and International Cooperation with the support of the Integral Program Against Gender Violence Fund of the United Nations and Spain for the achievement of Millennium Development Goals, aims to help to reduce all forms of violence against women and especially against women in situations of displacement.

In its first phase "Women Have Rights" has been proposed change processes for the State and society and take the new legal environment (Law 1257 and Order 092 from 2008) as an opportunity to move towards a life free of violence against women, clearly establishing responsibilities and protocols of care for women victims of gender violence and displacement.

This meeting will allow, through socialization of experiences of mayors, governors and organizations, that officially have joined to the strategy, joint actions between the different territories and the national level, setting goals and challenges to the process of territorial sustainability of the strategy in the light of the election of new departmental and municipal governments and define the guidelines for the construction of the Action Plan 2012.

Also, on October 14 has been set to perform with the participants of the workshop the meeting of Spokespersons of the Act 1257, developed by the Ministry of ICT in agreement with the Foundation Women, Art and Life (MAVI) in different regions of the country.

This workshop which is implemented with the video transformation methodology for the appropriation of the law by public officers, media and various organizations so, will become spokespeople for their achievements in various scenarios.

(Source: Mintic – Colombia)
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Combining mentoring with technology to foster women-led small and growing businesses in Africa, South Asia and the Middle East.

- Innovative on-line platform for cross-border mentoring developed with Google

- E-Mentoring boosts confidence, improves business performance and ultimately creates wealth for women entrepreneurs in developing and emerging markets.

-  Mentors benefit from a rich intercultural exchange, mentoring skills, improved technological skills and revitalized interest in their own career.

- The Foundation is seeking skilled professionals and entrepreneurs to give inspiration and advice to pioneering businesswomen.

Many women across Africa, South Asia and the Middle East have the ideas and ambition needed to become successful entrepreneurs but are held back by barriers such as lack of access to business skills, technology, networks and finance.

In response, the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women has developed an innovative solution that combines mentoring with technology to offer cross-border support to women entrepreneurs in developing and emerging markets. In collaboration with Google, the Foundation built a virtual community for women entrepreneurs to support each other and receive online mentoring and business advice.

The programme began with a 12-month pilot phase to test the new online platform and determine best practice. Following a positive independent evaluation, the Foundation is now continuing to expand its reach in order to support increasing numbers of women around the globe.

Founder, Cherie Blair says, "Our mentees are women with great entrepreneurial potential, and our mentors give them a vital boost by providing them with the extra advice and support they need".

Sarah Speake, Strategic Marketing Director at Google, says, "This programme will make a clear and tangible difference to the women it supports. I am thrilled that Google has been able to help make this happen through our partnership with the Cherie Blair Foundation".

(Source: PR Newswire)
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The Nobel Peace Prize for 2011 was awarded on Friday to three campaigning women from Africa and the Arab world in acknowledgment of their nonviolent role in promoting peace, democracy and gender equality. The winners were Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf — Africa’s first elected female president — her compatriot, peace activist Leymah Gbowee and Tawakul Karman of Yemen, a pro-democracy campaigner.

They were the first women to win the prize since Kenya’s Wangari Maathai, who died last month, was named as the laureate in 2004.

Most of the recipients in the award’s 110-year history have been men and Friday’s decision seemed designed to give impetus to the cause for women’s rights around the world.

“We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women obtain the same opportunities as men to influence developments at all levels of society”, said the citation read by Thorbjorn Jagland, a former Norwegian prime minister who heads the Oslo-based Nobel committee that chooses the winner of the $1.5 million prize.

In a subsequent interview, he described the prize as “a very important signal to women all over the world”.

Mrs. Johnson Sirleaf is nearing the end of a heated re-election campaign and Monrovia, the Liberian capital, saw her opponents join a big rally before Tuesday’s vote. Mr. Jagland said the election had not influenced the committee’s decision, calling the ballot there a “domestic consideration”. Analysts in Liberia have described the president’s re-election prospects as uncertain, although Friday’s announcement from Oslo could change that. But the Nobel committee’s decision underscored the gap between local perceptions of her — it is not hard to find critics of the president in Liberia — and the view from abroad.

In Yemen on Friday, Ms. Karman, 32, sat in a tent where she has been living since February as part of the sit-in organized to press demands for change. “This is the victory of our peaceful revolution”, she said. “I am so happy and I give this award to all of the youth and all of the women across the Arab world, in Egypt, in Tunisia”.

(Source: The New York Times)
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The ExxonMobil Foundation today announced a $1.5 million grant for research into how mobile phone technology can enhance women’s economic opportunities and entrepreneurship in the developing world. The grant to the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women will be highlighted at the 2011 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting.

The study, to be conducted in Nigeria, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Indonesia, aims to identify various mobile services that can help women entrepreneurs enhance their businesses, and what barriers exist to expanding access to these services.

“We know that mobile technology has great potential for placing women in low-income countries on a higher economic trajectory”, said Cherie Blair, founder of the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women.

“Mobile phone use doesn't just help women earn more money, it can also bring great benefits to businesses and therefore to the wider economy as well”.

Mobile phone services are often cited as a significant tool in economic development. There are 300 million fewer female than male subscribers worldwide, and a woman is 21 percent less likely to own a phone than a man in low- and middle-income countries.

“Studies like this will help us understand how technology can best support women in the developing world", said Suzanne M. McCarron, president of the ExxonMobil Foundation. “Success of women entrepreneurs is vital to building strong communities. Expanding the use of mobile technology for women will help raise living standards, leading to more prosperity for them, their families and their countries”.

"Our research shows that technology can be transformative for women, if we engage them in the process", said Sarah Degnan Kambou, president of the International Center for Research on Women. "This partnership does that and will help take women entrepreneurs farther and faster, as a result".

(Source: Financial Post)

Further details

Accra, Ghana, 20-23 September 2011

In accordance with its multi-year programme of work for 2010-2014, the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) will consider ‘The empowerment of rural women and their role in poverty and hunger eradication, development and current challenges' as its priority theme during its fifty-sixth session in 2012.

In order to contribute to a fuller understanding of the issue and to assist the Commission in its deliberations, the UN Women) in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) will convene an Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on ‘Enabling rural women's economic empowerment: institutions, opportunities and participation' from 20-23 September 2011 in Accra, Ghana.

The EGM will explore a wide range of strategies that can enhance the economic empowerment of rural women, and will focus on the following critical areas:

• Rural women’s strengthened role in agriculture;
• Rural women’s access to productive resources, technology markets and financing;
• Decent and productive employment and income-generating opportunities for rural women;
• Infrastructure and service-delivery that benefit rural women;
• Rural women’s role in natural resource management and climate change adaptation;
• Effective institutions and enabling policy environment that promotes gender responsive rural development.

See further Information here

(Source: UN Women)

Gender equality matters in its own right but is also smart economics: Countries that create better opportunities and conditions for women and girls can raise productivity, improve outcomes for children, make institutions more representative, and advance development prospects for all, says a new World Bank flagship report. 

The World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development details big strides in narrowing gender gaps but shows that disparities remain in many areas. The worst disparity is the rate at which girls and women die relative to men in developing countries: Globally, excess female mortality after birth and “missing” girls at birth account for an estimated 3.9 million women each year in low- and middle-income countries. About two-fifths are never born due to a preference for sons, a sixth die in early childhood, and over a third die in their reproductive years. These losses are growing in Sub-Saharan Africa, especially in countries hard-hit by HIV/AIDS. 

“We need to achieve gender equality”, said World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick. “Over the past five years, the World Bank Group has provided $65 billion to support girls’ education, women’s health, and women’s access to credit, land, agricultural services, jobs, and infrastructure. This has been important work, but it has not been enough or central enough to what we do. Going forward, the World Bank Group will mainstream our gender work and find other ways to move the agenda forward to capture the full potential of half the world’s population”.

The report cites examples of how countries could gain by addressing disparities between men and women:

·  Ensuring equal access and treatment for women farmers would increase maize yields by 11 to 16 percent in Malawi and by 17 percent in Ghana.

· Improving women’s access to agricultural inputs in Burkina Faso would increase total household agricultural production by about 6 percent, with no additional resources—simply by reallocating resources such as fertilizer and labor from men to women.

·  The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that equal access to resources for female farmers could increase agricultural output in developing countries by as much as 2.5 to 4 percent.

·  Eliminating barriers that prevent women from working in certain occupations or sectors would have similar positive effects, reducing the productivity gap between male and female workers by one-third to one-half and increasing output per worker by 3 to 25 percent across a range of countries. 

“Blocking women and girls from getting the skills and earnings to succeed in a globalized world is not only wrong, but also economically harmful,” said Justin Yifu Lin, World Bank Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President, Development Economics. “Sharing the fruits of growth and globalization equally between men and women is essential to meeting key development goals”.

(Source: World Bank)
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In less than two years, the South African AIDS-education project Young Africa Live is engaging hundreds of thousands of young people in sensitive discussions about love, sex and HIV/AIDS. Earlier this summer, the project released findings from its “Youth Sex Survey”, unprecedented in both size and content. The survey, conducted on the mobile platform that is the centerpiece of Young Africa Live, pulls back the curtain on what young South Africans think about crucial issues affecting their sexual health.

The Young Africa Live survey received more than 130,000 responses from the mobile platform’s users, the majority of whom are between 16 and 24. Findings included a high percentage (44 percent) of South African youth admitting they are sexually active at the same time that they are significantly concerned about HIV/AIDS – 81 percent of respondents indicated they equate “not telling a sexual partner that you carry the virus” with outright murder. In good news for the government’s promotion of circumcision as part of an overall HIV prevention program, a huge number of females – 78 percent -- stated that they prefer a circumcised partner.

Young Africa Live included some superficial questions in the poll, like whether guys and girls can be “just friends”. Placing serious and entertaining content side by side is the content formula Young Africa Live employs across its mobile platform – a combination that has proved successful for building an audience of more than 400,00 active users.

Young Africa Live’s founding organization, the Praekelt Foundation, didn’t want to brand the project as an “AIDS portal”. They avoided explicitly describing the platform as related to AIDS because of the stigma associated with the disease and the fact that many South Africans, particularly those who do not know their HIV-status, may not identify with that label.  “Our approach is not to preach, but to allow discussion, dialogue and community support”, says Marcha Neethling, Head of Operations for Praekelt.

The concept for Young Africa Live evolved from the recognition that South African youth are becoming avid users of mobile portals like Vodafone Live and MTNPlay. The Johannesburg-based Praekelt Foundation, which leverages mobile technology to improve the “health and well-being of people living in poverty”, was looking for a way to educate young South Africans about HIV/AIDS.  According to Neethling, they saw an opportunity in the fact that millions of young people use these mobile portals to chat, download music, read up on celebrity and sports news, participate in competitions, and win prizes. 

(Source: AudienceScapes)

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As growing numbers of women enter the economic mainstream, they will have a profound effect on global business.

A huge and fast-growing group of people are poised to take their place in the economic mainstream over the next decade, as producers, consumers, employees, and entrepreneurs. This group’s impact on the global economy will be at least as significant as that of China and India’s billion-plus populations. But its members have not yet attracted the level of attention they deserve.

If China and India each represent 1 billion emerging participants in the global marketplace, then this “third billion” is made up of women, in both developing and industrialized nations, whose economic lives have previously been stunted, underleveraged, or suppressed. These women, who have been living or contributing at a subsistence level, are now entering the mainstream for the first time. They estimate that about 870 million of them will do so by 2020, with the number conceivably passing 1 billion during the following decade. Their presence as economic actors will be widely felt, because they have long been overrepresented in the ranks of subsistence agriculture and other resource-based forms of work. As they move into knowledge work, in domains ranging from manufacturing to medicine to education to information technology, their sheer numbers will hasten the integration of the regions where they live into the larger economy.

To date, the potential of women as economic players has been unrealized. The reasons became evident recently in a Booz & Company analysis of data from the International Labour Organization (ILO), a United Nations constituent that tracks global workforce statistics. Globally, many women could be considered “not prepared” (lacking sufficient education, usually defined as secondary school); others are “not enabled” (lacking support from families and communities); and a significant number are both. The specific characteristics of these two major constraints vary widely, according to local social, cultural, and economic conditions. But as the constraints are alleviated — through increased migration to cities, the expansion of educational opportunities, changes in local laws and cultural norms, and investments in infrastructures that support greater workforce participation — the Third Billion’s movement into the middle class will accelerate. The pattern of this emergence will probably shift from a graduated incline to a graph that looks more like a hockey stick.

(Source: Strategy and Business)

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Moves are afoot in Sierra Leone to empower women through mobile phone ownership and improved computer literacy.

Admire Bio has the reassured presence of a successful businesswoman, with an edge that reveals she is still hungry for more. Bio, 28, a single mother living with her parents, set up her first internet cafe in the Sierra Leone capital, Freetown, only a year ago. She has expanded with two more branches, and plans to go national if she can secure a bank loan.

"My biggest motivation is challenging men," she says, "to [get women to] say: 'Yes! I can be successful without you'".

But things aren't easy. "Men make you dependent", says Bio. "Women only get loans with collateral from male relatives. My fiance offered his land. Worse, it's common to be pressured into sex by bank staff, if there isn't a man's backing, when women apply for loans. I'm angry women can't succeed alone".

The swell of internet users in her cafe tells Bio she is on a winning road. Access to the internet and computer literacy is an area of much needed growth and investment. Only around 0.3% of the population are described as internet users (pdf), while fibre-optic broadband will not arrive until next year. Bio offers women evening computer courses "to make them stronger".

Meanwhile, mobile phones are ubiquitous, in urban areas at least, with around 26% of people owning one (pdf). In the absence of widespread internet access, mobiles have been seen as something of a panacea for development in Africa.

Kenya's M-Pesa money-transfer is hailed by technology gurus and development experts alike as an example of how poverty can be bypassed and development hastened. However, "banking the unbanked" has been questioned by some (pdf), as mobile money often caters for already affluent groups.

M-Pesa's success inspired Sheka Forna back to his homeland, Sierra Leone, to start Splash. Since it launched in 2009, Splash has convinced around 100,000 people to forsake real money for the virtual kind, effectively using their SIM cards as bank accounts.

(Source: Guardian Newspaper)
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The World Bank published recently a video on its Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) program in Rwanda called eRwanda. The video features Dr. Jeanne D’Arc Mujawamariya, Rwandan minister of Gender and Family Protection, as speaking on the impact of ICT on the women of Rwanda.

The World Bank’s eRwanda project that focuses on technology has provided telecommunication infrastructure especially in the rural areas of Rwanda. eRwanda, with a US$10 million International Development Association (IDA) grant, started in 2006 to support the government’s efforts to use ICT for improving service delivery.  By establishing telecenters, and four “ICT buses” that travel throughout the country and train villagers in using ICTs, the project is providing ICT services to people that currently do not have ICT access.

According to Dr. Mujawamariya, ICT has been particularly useful in the agricultural businesses. In the agriculture sector, women are more predominant than men. Women have embraced ICT in such a way that they get a deeper understanding of the market. She notes: “if you want women to work smarter in agriculture, it means you have to help them to save their products. You have to help them know how the market is and how the prices are throughout the country. Before ICT introduction it was not possible to know what is going on in the market, in the north or in the southern province. But now it is possible, even on your mobile phone. Then you can know which city in this country needs, for example, beans. Because people are now connected.” She added that ICT has changed the way women do business.

However, the number of women eRwanda has reached out so far is just 700. Out of Rwanda’s 11 million population 52% are women. The vast majority of women population of  Rwanda are still outside the reach of ICT. One promising example of the project is ‘eSoko’. It is  an agricultural marketplace information system. The project provides market price information to rural farmers and cooperatives via text messages using mobile phones.

The video concludes with Mujawamariya remark filled with hope for the future: “ICT is a tool to improve the lives of our people”.

(Source: Microfinance Focus)

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The GSMA mWomen Programme announced the launch of their Policy Recommendations paper to Address the Mobile Phone Gender Gap. Following on from the barriers identified in their report they realized that governments and policy makers have a critical role to play in empowering women through mobile technology and are a pivotal part of the ecosystem in achieving the goal of reducing the mobile phone gender gap in developing countries. Women’s empowerment is crucial for a country’s economic growth and development; mobile technology can help to achieve these goals in line with the Millennium Development Goals.

Summary of Recommendations:

1. Reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO) of mobile

   • Remedy the discriminatory tax treatment of telecoms goods and services to reduce the total cost of ownership of mobile.

2. Remove cultural barriers to mobile phone ownership and access to ICTs by women

   • Systematise the collection of data on the use of ICTs and mobiles by women.

   • Embed the issue of gender into the ICT agenda.

   • Embed the issue of women’s access to and uptake of ICTs into existing gender programmes.

   • Designate well-respected individuals as champions of mobile phone ownership amongst women.

   • Introduce piecemeal practical measures that will facilitate the use and profitable exploitation of ICTs by women.

3. Address limited technical literacy amongst women at the base of the pyramid

   • Collaborate with and incentivise local providers of culturally sensitive training in use of ICTs for women.

4. Encourage the development of value-added mobile services that benefit women in particular

   • Launch mGovernment services which will be attractive to women, particularly in rural areas.

   • Allocate Universal Service Funds to fund the development of value-added mobile services.

(Source: mWomen)

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President of Rwanda (Paul Kagame) has called upon the East African Community (EAC) member states to invest in programmes and institutions that improve the livelihoods and incomes of women, if they are to succeed in empowering them.

The President made the call, yesterday, while officially opening the first ever East African Community (EAC) Women in Business Conference in Kigali.

Addressing the two-day conference attended by delegations representing women entrepreneurs from the EAC partner states and Southern Sudan, President Kagame said that while there is no doubt that women play a critical role in society today, they remain the majority of the region's poor and vulnerable.

"Despite many good efforts, women remain on the fringe of our formal economies. The question that begs an urgent answer today is how can we progress on this critical issue as fast and as effectively as possible?" Kagame said.

"Women's productive capacity is staggering. In Africa today, women constitute 70 percent to 80 percent of the total agriculture force, a third of the global manufacturing labour force and a third of the micro and small scale enterprises business population", he added.

The Head of State further said that women constitute the majority in the informal sector but ironically, still struggle with low incomes, unemployment, and unequal access to financial resources, as well as legal obstacles to their potential as entrepreneurs.

"It is clear, therefore, that the EAC needs to properly harness this energy and talent as an important contribution to the region's socio-economic transformation", he said.

In order to achieve that, President Kagame said the EAC states need to consider a number of key interventions including investing in training and equipping women, especially those in the informal sector, with the skills necessary to manage their businesses.

"It is our responsibility as governments and regional bodies to mobilise more resources and ensure that institutions to support women in business exist and work well", "Similarly, we must continue to invest in programmes that have a direct positive impact on family livelihoods and women's economic security", Kagame said.

(Source: All Africa News)
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Three million people living in poverty in Africa and South Asia—around 75 percent of them women—will gain access to low-cost mobile phones identities and mobile phone numbers following United Kingdom-based technology firm Movirtu’s commitment made today to the  Business Call to Action (BCtA).

BCtA is a global initiative supported by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), among other international organizations, which aims to encourage private sector efforts to fight poverty.

Instead of sharing a phone number with family members or neighbours, those provided with a Movirtu cloud phone number will be able to use any mobile phone to log in with their own unique number to make and receive individual calls and access critical information and services such as banking or agriculture support.

“Evidence shows that access to mobile communications is a way of improving lives and expanding the earning potential of one billion people living on $1-2 a day”, said Amanda Gardiner, BCtA Acting Program Manager.

“By providing low-income communities with access to secure mobile accounts and identities, Movirtu is helping to bridge the divide between those that have easy access to mobile phones and those that rely on community phones or paying a borrower’s premium to friends to meet their communication needs”, Gardiner added.

The company plans to bring the phone technology to at least12 markets in Africa and South Asia by early 2013, giving at least 50 million people in both continents access to the technology, with a target of 3 million using it on a regular basis.

A unique personal mobile identity will allow users to access network applications that provide information about employment opportunities, promote access to mobile payment systems or banking services, and help keep users up-to-date on a variety of health and market topics.

“It is a basic fact not everyone in the world can afford their own mobile phone”, said Ramona Liberoff, Executive Vice President of Marketing, Strategy and Planning at Movirtu. “With Movirtu’s Cloud Phone technology, we give shared phone users their own mobile identity, opening up the world of mobile banking and payments and customised information services.  Our goal is to increase the earning potential of those on $1-2 a day by saving money and allowing them to access the economic benefits of a full mobile identity today”.

Women in rural communities in South Asia and sub-Saharan African will be the main beneficiaries of Movirtu’s investment. Low-income women in these regions are up to 21 percent less likely to have mobile phone access than a man, according to global mobile operator association GSMA.

(Source: UNDP)

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Individuals, non-governmental organizations, groups and networks are invited to submit written communications—including, but not limited to, complaints, appeals and petitions—to the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) with information pertaining to alleged injustices and human rights violations against women in any country. Examples of claims include arbitrary arrests of women, domestic violence, unfair employment practices and discrimination against women under immigration and nationality laws. The deadline to submit such communications is 1 August 2011.

The communications procedure aims to identify emerging trends on injustices and discriminatory practices against women for policy formulation purposes.

UN Women’s Human Rights section will collect and compile the claims as well as replies on the communications from Governments concerned into a confidential report. Following that, a Working Group of the Commission, composed of representatives from all five regions, will identify trends and patterns of injustice and discriminatory practices against women. The Working Group will present their findings in a confidential report to CSW at its annual session (CSW56) in March 2012 for review.

For more information on how to submit a claim, categories of claims received in the past, the communications procedure and contact information, visit the submission page: http://www.unwomen.org/csw/communications-procedure

(Source: UN Women)

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Karine Ramadan is a self-confessed teen geek who often spends five hours a day on the internet.

She would love to work in technology when she is older, but will have to fight against a stark "gender gap" among Lebanon's high-tech community, according to activists. Karine, 16, was the ideal candidate for Girl Geek Camp, currently running for the first time for 16 teenagers in the mountains of Lebanon.

The girls learn about social networking, internet security, basic programming, blogging, photography, gaming, mobile technology, video editing, careers in technology, entrepreneurship and much more.

Nadine Moawad, an activist for women's rights and technology who is running the camp, said: "I want to close the gender gap in technology which is very pronounced in Lebanon. Girls are not encouraged to pursue math or engineering, if you meet someone in IT support or an entrepreneur you expect them to be a man. "We are trying to break these myths and give girls the option to do technology at college or in their careers".

Statistics on opportunities for women in technology in Lebanon are hard to come by, but a 2010 study of Facebook membership carried out by Spot On Public Relations and reported in Online Marketing Trends showed women were more active in Lebanon than other countries of Middle East and North Africa, but behind Europe and the United States.

It found 44% of Lebanon's 930,000 Facebook members were women, compared with 37% across the Middle East and North Africa, and 56% in the United States.

Moawad is part of a women's collective called Nasawiya which runs programs in various fields from politics to writing. It has an ongoing program called Take Back the Tech aimed mainly at women in their 20s.

Girl Geek Camp is an attempt to bring these ideas to a younger generation of 15 to 19-year-olds. Moawad said: "We realized teenaged girls are using the internet and need to enhance their skills and understanding of social media and technology.

(Source: CNN News)

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A research project in India designed to illuminate technology solutions that uniquely benefit women entrepreneurs.

The Cherie Blair Foundation for Women and the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) are collaborating on a research project in India which will focus on how information and communication technologies (ICT) such as mobile phone services, can facilitate women’s entrepreneurship in India.

The research comes out of our 2010 Women Mean Business Conference in Mumbai, where leading professionals and women entrepreneurs gathered to discuss how ICT could help women overcome the barriers that women entrepreneurs in India face.

India was chosen partly because of its rapidly developing economy. Also despite the fact that mobile phones are seemingly ubiquitous in India, there is a significant gender gap in access to mobile technology in South Asia, where a man is 37% more likely to have access to a mobile phone than a woman.

The research will identify factors which enhance the ability of technology to transform Indian women's economic experiences and continue India’s economic development by focusing on the relationship Indian women entrepreneurs have with technology as well as the emerging trends.  The report will serve as the foundation for a set of recommendations that can facilitate concrete action by development actors, the government and the private sector.

(Source: Cherie Blair Foundation for Women)

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Unprecedented growth in access to mobile phones has not only made communication easy, but also spurred economic and socio-economic benefits in many countries. It is somewhat surprising to pause and note that mobile applications that emerged out of local inventions for local needs - such as mobile money for the unbanked, crowd sourcing tools used during elections or humanitarian crises, and citizen mobile journalism - were virtually unheard of only 5-6 years ago.

Even as mobile penetration has grown exponentially in countries such as India, Kenya and Egypt, the digital divide between citizens in these countries remains an issue. Despite rising access to mobile phones and the steady growth of these countries’ economies, gender inequities and income disparities continue to present barriers.

Despite the obstacles preventing women in the bottom of the income pyramid (BOP) from obtaining and using mobile phones, they may represent the largest potential market for mobile access growth. According to a recent GSMA report, “Women and Mobile: A Global Opportunity”, the globe’s most disenfranchised women could actually present mobile operators with a US$13 billion incremental, annual revenue opportunity. In this light, closing the mobile phone “gender gap” serves not only development goals, but may also be in the interest of mobile operators aiming to be market leaders.

To help development practitioners and mobile operators be alert to the disparities and opportunities as countries continue to experience economic growth and greater access to ICT technologies, we look at three distinct regions: South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East.

(Source: Audiencescapes)

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Empowering women and advancing their rights is not only the right thing to do but it can lead to progress on a range of issues, including the fight against poverty, hunger and violence, the head of the United Nations agency tasked with promoting women’s rights said today.

“Promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment is not solely a plea for justice or for fulfilling human rights commitments. It is both of those things, but also so much more”, Michelle Bachelet said in her opening statement to the annual session of the Executive Board of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women).

“Where we fail to capitalize on the potential and talents of one half of the population, we also squander the potential to reduce poverty, hunger, disease, environmental degradation and violence”, she stated.

“The evidence base for this is growing”, added Ms. Bachelet, the Executive Director of UN Women and former Chilean President.

She noted that in a recent report, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that closing the gender productivity gap arising from unequal access of women to productive resources would reduce the number of undernourished people by 12 to 17 per cent. That translates into 100 to 150 million fewer people living in hunger.

Countries, she added, are beginning to count the cost of domestic violence to health and in lost workplace productivity, which in the United States reaches $5.8 billion each year. “In today’s world, can we afford not to increase investment in eliminating gender discrimination when it has the potential to yield such high returns?

“UN Women’s good fortune is that it comes into being at a time when countries and businesses are asking this question, and rethinking their investment strategies,” she stated. “Our challenge now is to meet the rising demands and expectations.”

Ms. Bachelet has identified six priorities for the new agency, including ending violence against women, ensuring their full participation in conflict resolution and enhancing their economic empowerment.

(Source: UN News Centre)

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Increasing women's access to quality midwifery has become a focus of global efforts to realize the right of every woman to the best possible health care during pregnancy and childbirth. A first step is assessing the situation.

The State of World's Midwifery 2011: Delivering Health, Saving Lives, supported by 30 partners, provides the first comprehensive analysis of midwifery services and issues in countries where the needs are greatest.

The report provides new information and data gathered from 58 countries in all regions of the world. Its analysis confirms that the world lacks some 350,000 skilled midwives -- 112,000 in the neediest 38 countries surveyed -- to fully meet the needs of women around the world. The report explores a range of issues related to building up this key health workforce.

This page includes access to the full report in three languages, as well as related resources, applications, bibliographical information, individual country profiles and stories of midwives.

(Source: UNFPA)

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Five United Nations agencies have banded together to call for urgently addressing gender-biased sex selection favouring boys, a common practice in many parts of South, East and Central Asia that they say fuels a culture of discrimination and violence.

“Sex selection in favour of boys is a symptom of pervasive social, cultural, political and economic injustices against women, and a manifest violation of women’s human rights”, says a statement issued by the agencies, which have reviewed the evidence behind the causes, consequences and lessons learned regarding “son preference”.

Often under intense pressure to produce a son, women seek to discover the sex of a foetus through ultrasound. The discovery of a female foetus can then lead to its abortion. Sex selection can also take place before a pregnancy is established, or after the birth of a girl, through child neglect or infanticide, they add. Over decades, the practice has caused a sex-ratio imbalance in many countries particularly in South Asia, East Asia and Central Asia – with ratios in some places as high as 130 boys for every 100 girls.

“There is huge pressure on women to produce sons… which not only directly affects women’s reproductive decisions, with implications for their health and survival, but also puts women in a position where they must perpetuate the lower status of girls through son preference”, they say.

“It is also women who have to bear the consequences of giving birth to an unwanted girl child. These consequences can include violence, abandonment, divorce or even death”, according to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The imbalance between the number of men and women owing to sex selection can in some areas lead to the trafficking of women for forced marriages from other regions or the sharing of brides among brothers, the agencies point out.

“Renewed and concerted efforts are needed by governments and civil society to address the deeply rooted gender discrimination which lies at the heart of sex selection”, the experts noted.

They propose concrete steps to tackle the problem, including the collection of more reliable data on the extent of the problem and the factors driving it; guidelines on the use of technology for health professionals; supportive measures for girls and women, such as incentives for families with only daughters; and other legal and awareness-raising actions.

(Source: UN News Centre)

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The first ever World report on disability, produced jointly by WHO and the World Bank, suggests that more than a billion people in the world today experience disability.

People with disabilities have generally poorer health, lower education achievements, fewer economic opportunities and higher rates of poverty than people without disabilities. This is largely due to the lack of services available to them and the many obstacles they face in their everyday lives. The report provides the best available evidence about what works to overcome barriers to health care, rehabilitation, education, employment, and support services, and to create the environments which will enable people with disabilities to flourish. The report ends with a concrete set of recommended actions for governments and their partners.

This pioneering World report on disability will make a significant contribution to implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. At the intersection of public health, human rights and development, the report is set to become a "must have" resource for policy-makers, service providers, professionals, and advocates for people with disabilities and their families.

(Source: World Health Organization)

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A Global Partnership for Girls’ and Women’s Education will be launched at a high level forum to be held at UNESCO Headquarters on Thursday 26 May.

UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova will welcome participants to the event, followed by opening remarks from United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and United States Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. The keynote speech for the Forum will be made by the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina.  

Prime Minister of Mali Cissé Mariam Kaïdama Sidibé, the Aga Khan, founder and chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network Foundation, and representatives  of several corporate giants participating in the partnership including Nokia, Procter and Gamble, GEMS Education, Microsoft and the Packard Foundation, will also participate.  

Globally, some 39 million girls of lower secondary age are currently not enrolled in either primary or secondary education, while two thirds of the world’s 796 million illiterate adults are women. Only about one third of countries have achieved gender parity at secondary level.  

‘Better Life, Better Future’ will seek collaborative and innovative solutions to the most fundamental obstacles and challenges to education for women and adolescent girls. A number of projects are already underway in several countries.

(Source: UNESCO)
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Anar Foundation will expand its helpline to young people Quechua´s speaker who live at risk, thus they expected to be available to population of 1 million 270 thousand children, adolescents and youth, in most excluded areas of the country.

Under the slogan "Your voice will protect you", the foundation Anar expand its service line from Friday May 20th to all calls in Quechua to be made from landline or public telephone, conducted at national level, free of charge and confidential from Monday to Saturday (from 09:00 to 21:00).

Germán Guajardo, president of Telephone Anar said that the Quechua service arose from the need to expand the practice of counseling psychology with an inclusive approach that benefits the most excluded populations in the country, figures that come to 850 thousand children 420 thousand adolescents and young people, according to statistics from INEI (2007).
He noted that from July 1998 until April 2011, 342.478 calls were received nationwide.

The most recurrent problems reported by children and adolescents are physical violence, psychological and sexual problems; and difficulties with their parents as well as psychological problems.

These cases are treated with due confidentiality, they receive support and guidance that they need to strengthen personal aspects of the victim by promoting a culture of peace and good deal with zero tolerance for violence.

Finally, Mr. Guajardo said that any request, advice or guidance needed by children and young people can also be performed via email, entering in the www.anarperu.org website, in the link: “Need help?”.

(Source: Andina News)

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The purpose of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD) is to help raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies, as well as of ways to bridge the digital divide.

17th May marks the anniversary of the signing of the first International Telegraph Convention and the creation of the International Telecommunication Union.

This year, World Telecommunication and Information Society Day highlight the theme “Better life in rural communities with ICTs”, which was adopted by ITU Council in 2009 and follows up on the theme for 2010: “Better city, better life with ICTs”.

ICTs are increasingly in demand to meet the Millennium Development Goals. In the rural context, ICTs provide enhanced opportunities to generate income and combat poverty, hunger, ill health and illiteracy.

Half the world’s population resides in rural districts and far flung communities. This half — three billion people — represent the poorer, less educated, and more deprived cousins of our urban citizens. Indeed, latest figures indicate that as many as 70 per cent of the developing world’s 1.4 billion extremely poor people live in rural areas. They are also among the least connected to the benefits of ICTs. We cannot allow this situation to continue.

As the leading specialized agency of the United Nations for information and communication technologies (ICT), ITU looks towards its Members to raise awareness of the role of ICTs in creating fresh opportunities for a better life through long-term, sustainable development, not least among the most vulnerable sections of our society.

ICTs and related e-applications are key instruments in improving governance and rural services, such as providing community health care, safe drinking water and sanitation, education, food and shelter; improving maternal health and reducing child mortality; empowering women and the more vulnerable members of society; and ensuring environmental sustainability. As ICTs increasingly dictate lifestyles and behavior patterns and power the growth of trade and commerce, rural communities must not be allowed to fall behind cities in their quest for connectivity.

Source: ITU Events)

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Social networks like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and the chat will help from now to prevent and address violence against women as part of the campaign “if they love you, they should love you well”, developed by the Ministry of Women and Social Development (Mimdes)of Peru. The Minister of Mimdes, Virginia Borra, today launched the preventive campaign against violence through electronic means, considering the large influence that those have among youth.

"Currently, in Peru there are over three million users of Facebook, of which the majority is composed by young and just 30 percent of cases of violence treated in emergency centers woman is young victims aged between 13 and 25 years old".

Borra explained that from now is available to enter the on the ministry's website and link to the “Chat 100” section, where you can anonymously seek help from a specialist.
"Here there will be no records of names, so this means you can go to calmly explain your situation to the professionals who attend from 08:00 to 22:00 hours", explained the minister.

Also, if you prefer contact through Facebook and Twitter can be added or follow “sitkiernktkieranbien” account to access communication and receive professional advice on the subject to exit or overcome any situation of violence.

You can also find news, prevention messages, pictures and videos on the subject, which aims to raise awareness about the need to combat violence against women. "Do not forget that the whole issue of violence starts with stressful situations, with small disagreements and minor conflicts unresolved, which may come to physical and verbal aggression and lawlessness".

Borra insisted that it is important that when you start a process of violence, this has to be reported immediately to avoid extreme cases, as many femicide and attempted killings that happen in the country.

(Source: Andina News)

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Senior United Nations officials today stressed the need to promote the participation of women in decision-making, noting that democracy and gender equality are interlinked and mutually reinforcing.

“While women’s political participation improves democracy, the reverse is also true: democracy is an incubator for gender equality,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in his remarks at a roundtable held at UN Headquarters on gender equality and democracy.

“It provides public space for discussion of human rights and women’s empowerment. It enables women’s groups to mobilize. It makes it easier for women to realize their political, civil, economic and social rights.”

He told participants at the event, which included representatives from various UN departments and entities, as well as the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, that one need look no further than the daily headlines to see the timeliness of today’s gathering.
 
“Women were among those who marched in Côte d’Ivoire to uphold the democratic will of the people – with several of them killed for making that stand,” said Mr. Ban. “In Egypt, Tunisia and elsewhere, women have been among those in the vanguard demanding change, rights, dignity, and opportunity.”

Noting gender inequality in decision-making remains a great impediment to democracy, the Secretary-General said more must be done to address the gender gap in democratic participation.

(Source: UN News Centre)

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Based on the AudienceScapes nationally representative survey of Tanzania, conducted in July 2010.

The report focuses on how people of different social groups in Tanzania consume, share and assess information on key health issues including HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Maternal and Child Health. Specifically, the report helps development organizations to identify health information needs for Tanzania adults and ways to share such information with key demographic groups.

There is inequitable access to health information in Tanzania - with significant differences between rural and urban dwellers and among socioeconomic groups. As in most developing countries, the rural residents or those of lower socioeconomic status are disadvantaged in terms of access to communication tools and health information in general. This report provides insights into how development practitioners should craft their health campaigns.

Read Chapters

Chapter 1 The General Health Landscape: an overview of self-reported health status and level of access to health services, and variations by socioeconomic groups;

Chapter 2 Health Information Gathering and Sharing: general access to and use of health information, as seen through the prism of the rural-urban divide and the gender gap in Tanzania;

Chapter 3 HIV/AIDS Education: A Demand for Better Information, with a focus on vulnerable populations;

Chapter 4 Malaria Education: Tapping Into All Means of Outreach, exploring the rural-urban divide and the gender gap;

Chapter 5 Family Planning And Maternal And Child Health: The Need for a Holistic Approach, with a focus on reproductive-age women;

This report draws from a nationally representative survey of Tanzanian individuals, conducted in July 2010. The survey included modules on access to information sources generally as well as access to information about health-related issues, plus questions about trust in various information sources and use of word-of-mouth networks to stay informed about health issues. The survey was based on face-to-face interviews and covered all regions of the country.

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(Source: AudienceScapes)

The FAO-Dimitra Project, a participatory information and communication initiative whose goal is to improve the visibility of rural men and women, recently launched “Communicating Gender for Rural Development: Integrating Gender in Communication for Development.” This handbook is designed for all development practitioners (not only communication/ information specialists) and was born out of the observation that all too often, gender is overlooked in the design of communication initiatives for development in rural areas and that rural populations, women particularly, are rarely viewed as primary sources of information. This has an impact on the action of communication with consequences that vary from reduced efficiency to adverse results.

The publication reviews the concepts and approaches of gender and communication and the reasons for including gender in communication for development initiatives in rural areas; it also provides practical guidance on achieving this successfully.

Unlike conventional communication initiatives that often deliver top-down messages to a sometimes passive audience, communication for development initiatives are based on a dialogue process that aims to achieve sustainable changes within a community. They are implemented on the premise that change will take hold only if the community takes ownership. Therefore, this type of initiative promotes a participatory process that involves all the members of the target population from the start and empowers them to shape the project as it unfolds.

Rural populations face serious challenges in accessing information and means of communication: they are geographically isolated with very limited access to services and infrastructure, have low rates of literacy and no possibility to seek out information, and their knowledge and skills are for the most part undervalued and unsolicited. Rural women, particularly, are disadvantaged. Customary practices often prevent them from accessing education and participating in public life, farmers’ organizations, and decision-making authorities such as village councils.

(Source: FAO - Gender)

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The UN Programme on Youth (UNPY) is hosting a briefing session on Empowering Disadvantaged and Vulnerable Girls and Young Women, in the context of the International Year of Youth. Kicking off the session will be the presentation of a video followed by a panel discussion with young people, civil society and UN experts. The panel, which will be moderated by Ms Susana Vas Patto from the Permanent Mission of Portugal to the UN, will discuss the root causes of disadvantage and vulnerability in girls and young women and will explore mechanisms for improving their participation in society, through active leadership, education and access to basic services.

Please join us in discussing the importance of enhancing opportunities for girls and young women:

Ms. Susana Vaz Patto, Moderator, Permanent Mission of Portugal to the UN

Ms. Sylvia Wong, Technical Specialist on Adolescents/Youth, UNFPA

Mr. Jimmie Briggs, Executive Director, Man Up Campaign

Ms. Itzel Delgado, Teen Advisor, Girl Up Campaign

Video Presentation and Monologue Readings, V‐Girls, V‐Day

Investing in adolescent girls and young women is key to development and a priority of the UN system. Furthermore, ensuring the participation of girls and young women at all levels is central to the International Year of Youth. Girls and young women can face disadvantage and vulnerability for a multitude of reasons, including poverty, lack access to education and health care, violence and conflict. These factors serve to limit the chances of girls and young women to actively participate in society, exposing them to greater vulnerability and marginalization. Through education, awareness raising and enhanced participatory opportunities, young women’s role in society can be greatly improved. The promotion of education for girls and young women as well as the development of young women as leaders are some of the tools which ensure young women role and visibility in society is strengthened.

(Source: International Year of Youth - IYY)

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New recommendations calling for an unprecedented level of accountability to save the lives of more women and children in developing countries were agreed today by the United Nations Commission on Information and Accountability for Women’s and Children’s Health which met in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. These new approaches will help ensure that pledges are honoured and resources spent in the most effective way to save lives.

The ten recommendations include specific approaches to:

    * Help countries develop better ways of gathering important health data to improve understanding of health needs and where resources should be focused
    * Develop a coordinated system for tracking health spending on women and children
    * National and global oversight to establish a feedback mechanism that supports continuous improvement in delivery of health services for women and children

To better understand the current situation and impact of efforts, the Commission advised monitoring progress based on specific indicators, such as the number of women who have access to skilled care during childbirth and the number of children treated for pneumonia.

“All partners are mutually accountable for the promises they make and the health policies and programmes they design and implement,” said Jakaya Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania and co-chair of the Commission with Stephen Harper, Canadian Prime Minister. “Tracking resources and results of public health spending is critical for transparency, credibility and ensuring that much-needed funds are used to save the lives of women and children.”
The recommendations, which come after more than five months of in-depth discussions and work across a high-level group of global leaders, were delivered at the conclusion of the second and final meeting of the Commission. The goal is to improve transparency, ensure consistency in reporting and more effectively track resources spent on reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health.

(Source: ITU Newsroom)
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Community Technology Centers (CTCs) of the Office of the First Lady (DPD) developed various activities to mark the international day of the Girls in ICT, established by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to encourage participation of women in information technology and communication (ICT).

Throughout the day, in the Favidrio CTC community were conducted dialogues with girls and young women, where it was explained what is a computer, the benefits of information and communication technology and the risk that have the use of Internet.

Also, more than 500 children and adolescents conducted a guided tour of various areas of CTC, they manipulated the computers and explored on Internet topics of their interest. This action encouraged them to learn more about the wonderful world of technology.

At the meeting, the student and volunteer of Favidrio CTC, Ivel de los Santos, guided the "Women and Technology" discussion group, which served to explain that technology is present in everyday life and is used in various areas, including health, business, communication, education, among other daily activities.

"The technology is easy, fast and effective and makes women can work better in society and working life" said de los Santos who are students of St. Rita Parish School of San Cristobal.

(Source:Despacho Primera Dama - DPD)
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Greater efforts to support girls and young women to acquire skills in information and communications technologies (ICTs) could help address projected shortages of manpower in those professions, the United Nations telecommunications agency said today, marking the first “Girls in ICT Day.”

“With many countries now forecasting a shortage of skilled ICT professionals within the next ten years, it’s vital that we attract young women into technology if we are to sustain healthy growth rates for the industry overall,” said Hamadoun Touré, the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), in a statement announcing the launch of the Day.

“With excellent employment opportunities and very good remuneration, a career in technology represents an excellent choice for girls in every country worldwide,” Mr. Touré added.

The Girls in ICT Day will be observed on the fourth Thursday of April every year to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women through the use of ICTs. It results from a resolution adopted at ITU’s Plenipotentiary Conference in Guadalajara, Mexico, last year. 

Under the resolution, ITU pledged to incorporate a gender perspective in the implementation of all its programmes and plans, following which the Global Network of Women in ICT was established.

The network is designed to encourage girls and young women to choose technology careers by providing mentoring resources, high-profile role models and toolkits that help national authorities and organizations promote technology careers to women. It is supported by ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT), which, through its Gender Unit, is working on a range of strategies to use ICT to improve the livelihood of women worldwide.

(Source: UN News Center)

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On April 28th will be held International Girls in ICT Day in Colombia, which started as an initiative of the Global Network of Women ICT - WITNET of the ITU (International Telecommunication Union).

This celebration is held with the aim of fostering an inclusive environment for the empowerment of girls and women through personal development, academic and professional careers related to Information and Communication Technology.

The ICT Ministry joins to the celebration of International Women in Technology by the official launch of Squadron #BrigadaDigital#"GeekGirls" of Colombia. The launch will take place in the context of a virtual seminar with the participation of representatives of the Ministry of Information Technologies and Communications, the Ministry of Education, the International Telecommunication Union and the UN in Colombia. During the launch will feature testimonials of Colombian women who develop and use ICTs.

The event organized by the #"GeekGirls" will be an opportunity to reflect on the impact of ICT on gender and challenges to harness and enhance the opportunities and advantages that these technologies offer to improve the quality of life, educational processes, economic and social women.

The digital meeting will be held on Thursday April 28 from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm and will be seen through one of the collaborative spaces of the #BrigadaDigital: http://pio.la/platforms/brigadadigital.

Regarding to this event, Paolo Rosa, ITU Regional Officer for the Americas commented that on behalf of ITU Secretary General Dr. Hamadoun I. Touré and the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau Director Brahima Sanou, he is delighted to join Colombia’s first celebration of Girls in ICT Day.  ITU salutes Colombia as one of the first countries to celebrate Girls in ICT following the ITU call for action on this initiative.

Through Resolution 70, ITU seeks to promote and increase the interest of, and opportunities for, women and girls in ICT careers. This Resolution also established the new Global Network of Women in ICT Decision Makers (http://witnet.org/index.php), which was launched by Serbia’s Minister of Telecommunications and Information Society, Ms Jasna Matić, with the support of the ITU Secretary General and UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet during the 55th session of the Conference on the Status of Women this February.
 
ITU believes that support for girls in ICT is especially timely, in light of the predicted shortage of skilled ICT professionals within the next ten years.  A career in technology promises excellent employment opportunities for girls and women around the globe.

(Source: Mintic - Colombia)
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The Dominican Republic will held in the school Fabio Mota the "World Day of Girls in ICT", taking the call from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) which launched the initiative to encourage greater participation of girls in the field of Information and Communication Technology  (ICT).

The information was given today by Amparo Arango Echeverri, Coordinator of the Technical Support Unit of the National Commission for Information Society and Knowledge (CNSIC). She said that to celebrate this day, the Dominican Telecommunications Institute (Indotel) through CNSIC and the Research Center for the female Action  (CIPAF), institution that is "implementing a project on Gender and ICT: Gender Equity and Equality E-Dominicana", are organizing a panel-meeting in the high school, Fabio Mota aimed to young students (especially women) in the third and fourth grade of high school.The event will take place on Thursday April 28th.

Indotel, CNSIC and CIPAF will held this meeting-panel to discuss integration of women into the technology. "This new Day of the Girls in ICT will provide a much needed boost to the participation of women in the ICT sector", said Dr. Hamadoun Touré, ITU General-Secretary. "At the time when many countries are planning a shortage of ICT professionals over the next ten years, it is essential to attract young women into technology to maintain healthy growth rates for industry as a whole. A career technology, which offers excellent employment opportunities and a good remuneration, represents an excellent choice for girls of any country in the world", said Touré.

(Source: Indotel)
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Family planning and Maternal and Child Health (FP-MCH) are key components of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals, given their central role in healthy and productive populations. Tanzania has made some progress in these areas in recent years - for example, mortality rates among infants and children under five have declined. However, Tanzania has lagged in maternal health, with the UN MDG Monitor declaring that the country’s goal of reducing the maternal mortality ratio and increasing access to reproductive health is “off track”.

The 2010 AudienceScapes survey of Tanzania included a module to measure people's access to information in general, and access to health information in particular, as well as access to health services. The data yield some helpful guidelines for public health professionals seeking to educate the Tanzanian public about FP-MCH:

• Mass media, particularly radio, continues to play an important role in delivering FP-MCH information to vulnerable groups. Community word-of-mouth campaigns delivered by public health workers have the potential to be just as important, particularly among socioeconomically constrained populations with low levels of access to media outlets.
• A large proportion of Tanzanians across the country said they have access to clinics and medical doctors. However, only between a quarter and a third of respondents listed medical doctors as sources of information about FP-MCH.
• There is a clear demand for more information about FP-MCH. Over half of all respondents, including young women, said they would like more information about FP and 41 percent wanted further information on MCH.
• Health professionals must be aware of not only what are the key information gathering tools for general target groups like young women and men, but they also need to be aware of the limited reach of some media platforms among disadvantaged sub-groups.

(Source:AudienceScapes)
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The diferent public policies generated by the institutions of State should have a gender focus, to guarantee rights of vulnerable populations such as women, children and elderly, and more if they are in a disabilities position .

The vice Minister of Women, Ana Maria Mendieta, who was in charge the inauguration of the Second National Women and Disability Congress, reaffirmed that the State is obligated to provide better conditions for their development to people with disabilities, saying that a Women with disabilities suffer double discrimination, and a disabled girl from triple discrimination.

She commented that it must be differentiated policies aimed at men and women, and considered as paramount the coordination between the State and the Civil Society to promote better public policies.

In the event it was discussed issues such as decent employment and disability, job placement, importance of software for inclusion of persons with disabilities, job training, the importance of rehabilitation in the labor market, among other topics.

The event was held at the headquarters of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in San Isidro, and was attended by the President of the National Council for the Integration of Persons with Disabilities (CONADIS), the Director of the ILO for Andean Countries , Carmen Moreno, the representative of the National Labor Promotion Office for Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Labour, Felipe Celi Ato and the Permanent Representative of the Organization of American States in Peru, David Morris.

(Source:MIMDES - Peru)
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Only 23% of the UK’s tech workforce is female, but this figure might change in the future thanks to the arrival of Apps for Good to the Central Foundation Girls´ School (CFGS) in East London.

The Apps for Good course inaugurates its second location in the UK at the Central Foundation Girls’ School on 15th September, after launching its first CDI Community this March at the High Trees Community Development Trust, in Tulse Hill, South London.

Apps for Good is the new programme by CDI Europe where young people learn to create apps that change their world. It is focused around solving real life issues that matter to young people or the communities they live in. During the course, young people work together to find out what issues they want to tackle, and how best to solve them with mobile and web applications. Apps for Good encourages young people to use their creativity to develop the problem solving and design skills which are extremely valuable not only in the mobile app industry, but also in today’s complex information society.

Ben Cole, Head of Community at CFGS, assures: “This is the perfect project and we are the perfect place to develop it. All the girls who applied for the course want to achieve something and they see this programme as a real opportunity for them. They see themselves as privileged kids because they are getting an education and Apps for Good has given them the chance to put their passion for technologies to the service of the community in a practical way by developing apps that will solve specific problems around them.”

More than 40 girls applied for a place on the Apps for Good course, but only 20 of them will be able to attend the course, where some of the former Apps for Good students will now be working as educators.

“It was really difficult to make the selection of students”, explains Cole, “because all of them showed a great interest, and in the end we tried to come up with a mix of skills, abilities and attitudes.”

The lessons will take place twice a week as part of the Central+ programme. Central+ is an activity project for after school hours developed by CFGS, which offers the girls the opportunity to follow different activities such as learning street dance, joining a cinema club or going horse riding, among others. “All we want is for the girls to enjoy the same opportunities as any other student in the UK”, explains Cole.

(Source:Central Digital Inclusion - CDI)

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Mobile and social networks have become a tool for defence the human right, which has allowed instantly, denounce violations and abuse of power by governments and help in case of natural disasters, experts said today.

"Thanks to the mobile technology, people can embarrass governments when they intend to do one thing diferent what they say", said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, in CTIA Wireless conference that ended in Orlando (Florida).

During the three-day event with the slogan "Get Goin la vida móvil, 2011" the main leaders discussed the needs of industry and sector social impact, allowing communications over natural disasters, by intensifying the democratic spirit
stifling governments and even triggering revolutions.

Roth also highlighted the performance of social networks as "Twitter" in the instant disclosure of "abuse that otherwise could be hidden or could take days before be known, while generating social change and political, as never before possible".

John Stanton, director of Trilogy International Partners, highlighted the important role of social networks on transmit messages during natural disasters in Haiti earthquake last year.

(Source: RPP Radio News)
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The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is organizing the “ITU Asia-Pacific Regional Forum on “Digital Inclusion for All” which will be held at Suntec Convention Centre (Room 303 - 305) in Singapore on 22-24 June 2011. The Forum is kindly hosted by Singapore’s InfoComm Development Authority and the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS), with the support of the Government of Australia through the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy.

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have the potential to enhance the quality of life for persons with disabilities, elderly persons and disadvantaged women, men and youth and support them to enjoy independent living and participate in and contribute to society. However, for ICT-enabled solutions, barriers such as accessibility, availability and affordability need to be addressed.

The Forum is organized and designed to contribute to global activities related to ensuring that people with special needs are targeted by efforts to bridge the digital divide in line with Programme 4 of the 2010 ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC) Hyderabad Action Plan, WTDC Res.58 (Hyderabad, 2010): “Access to ICTs for persons with disabilities (PwDs), including persons with age-related disabilities”, Res. 55 (Doha, 2006): “Promoting gender equality towards and all-inclusive information society”, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD). The focus will be on ICT accessibility and the use of telecommunication/ICTs for the social and economic development for all, including persons with disabilities, the ageing society, women and girls, and other disadvantaged people. The Forum is essentially targeted at senior officials from policy makers, regulators, industry and international organizations that are involved in ICT policies, regulations, operations, strategies and development activities promoting digital inclusion for all.

The Forum will be conducted in English only and will be paperless.

(Source: ITU - Regional Office for Asia-Pacific Region)
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Initiative aims to encourage more girls into the ICT field.

ITU welcomes the establishment of an international ‘Girls in ICT Day’, which will be held every year on the fourth Thursday in April, beginning this year.

The new ‘Girls Day’ is the direct result of the adoption of Resolution 70 by ITU’s Plenipotentiary Conference in Guadalajara in 2010. The Resolution, ‘Gender mainstreaming in ITU and promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women through information and communication technologies’, resolved to incorporate a gender perspective in the implementation of all programmes and plans of ITU, and established the new Global Network of Women in ICT: http://witnet.org/index.php.

The network is designed to encourage girls and young women to choose technology careers by providing mentoring resources, positive, high-profile role models and toolkits that help national authorities and organizations promote technology careers to women. It is being supported and promoted by ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT), which, through its Gender Unit, is working on a range of strategies to leverage ICTs to improve the livelihood of women worldwide.

A toolkit designed to provide all the information and resources needed to run a national ‘Girls in ICT Day’ is now available at: http://witnet.org/documents/girlsday-toolkit.pdf. ITU actively encourages its Member States and Sector Members to get involved and organize local, regional and national events designed to showcase ICTs and technology careers to young female students. It also invites Ministries of Education, Ministries of Communications and other government entities to support the initiative by partnering with private sector companies to reach out to young girls through schools, tertiary institutions and in-house mentoring and shadowing programmes.

“This new Girls in ICT Day will provide a much-needed boost to female participation in the ICT sector,” said ITU Secretary-General Dr Hamadoun Touré. “With many countries now forecasting a shortage of skilled ICT professionals within the next ten years, it’s vital that we attract young women into technology if we are to sustain healthy growth rates for the industry overall. With excellent employment opportunities and very good remuneration, a career in technology represents an excellent choice for girls in every country worldwide.”  

(Source: ITU Newsroom)

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Partnership with telecentre.org will extend access to basic ICT training to more than one million disadvantaged women worldwide

ITU launched a digital literacy partnership with Philippine-based NGO telecentre.org Foundation that over the next 18 months will train one million unskilled women to use computers and modern information and communication technology (ICT) applications to improve their livelihoods.

The new Women’s Digital Literacy Campaign will leverage the combined reach of telecentre.org Foundation’s global network of 100,000 telecentres worldwide and ITU’s 192 Member States and 700 Sector Members to deliver training in ICT use following a ‘train the trainer’ model.

Between now and end 2012, training courses will be offered in at least 20,000 telecentres in countries around the world, each of which is expected to train at least 50 women – for a total of one million women trained.

“We hope this joint campaign with telecentre.org Foundation will have an enormous impact on improving the condition of women, wherever they may live, and whatever their circumstances”, said ITU Secretary-General Dr Hamadoun Touré. “With technology now widely recognized as a critical enabler for socio-economic development, this campaign will further reinforce ITU’s global efforts to promote the digital inclusion of women, and will be a key element in achieving Millennium Development Goal 3 on gender equality”.

Basheerhamad Shadrach, Executive Director of telecentre.org Foundation, said that offering digital skills to over one million women at the grassroots will help reverse the paradigm whereby, in many countries, technologies most often benefit men more than women. “These telecentre women, once trained to take advantage of the power of technology, will help their communities to access locale-specific information, time-tested knowledge, market opportunities, enhanced skills for employment and productivity, and more importantly, participate in the modern knowledge era, not only as mere consumers, but also as providers and producers of knowledge assets", he said.  

(Source: ITU Press release)

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Women remain second-class citizens in too many countries, deprived of basic rights or legitimate opportunities, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today, calling on universities to help in the fight to overcome discrimination and change perceptions about what women can and should do.

Speaking to the Global Colloquium of University Presidents, held at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Mr. Ban said universities can play “a significant role” in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.

“They can provide the training in critical thinking that a functional democracy needs,” he said. “They provide a foundation for the economic and medical research that is so essential to society’s well-being. And they supply graduates to the workforce.

“So it is essential that this issue of women’s rights and women’s representation is reflected in your curricula, your appointments, your practices and your partnerships.”

Mr. Ban said it was vital to give girls and young women the inspiration and tools so they have the opportunity to achieve, citing as an example the recent introduction of an all-female unit of Indian police officers to the UN peacekeeping force in Liberia (UNMIL).

“There was an immediate practical benefit – women felt safer and they felt more empowered to complain about the abuse they were enduring. But there was another, unanticipated consequence. Liberian women queued up to join their own police service. Because they saw it, they knew they could be it.”

Earlier this year a new UN entity known as UN Women came into being to replace four separate organizations working to advance the rights of women worldwide.

(Source: UN News Centre)

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UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet together with El Salvador’s President and First Lady on 28 March inaugurated the first “Ciudad Mujer” service centre in Lourdes, Colón.

An El Salvador government initiative with support by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the centre is the first of its kind in the Latin America region to offer comprehensive services to economically and socially empower women. Services include healthcare access, support for survivors of violence, daycare and job training.

The centre will serve the municipalities of Armenia, Maple City, Columbus, Jayaque Sacacoyo, San Juan Opico, Talnique and Tepecoyo, in the west. The IDB is considering a loan proposal to support six additional centers in El Salvador.

(Source: UN News)
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Noting that quality education and women’s full access to and participation in science and technology were imperative for achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment, the Commission on the Status of Women today urged Governments and relevant United Nations agencies to take appropriate actions to bolster women’s access to education and to specifically strengthen capacities to ensure that science education policies and curricula were relevant to their needs.  

Those were among the key observations and recommendations at the core of the Commission’s agreed conclusions (document E/CN.6/2011/L.6), reflecting the overall theme of the 45-member body’s fifty-fifth session, “access and participation of women and girls in education, training, science and technology, including for the promotion of women’s equal access to full employment and decent work”.  The Commission’s 2011 session, which opened at Headquarters on 22 February, had been originally scheduled to close on 4 March, but protracted negotiations on the agreed conclusions forced it to suspend its work until its closing today.

Among a host of vital priorities identified in the agreed conclusions, the Commission stressed that access to and participation in quality education, including in the science and technology fields, by women and girls of all ages, was an economic necessity and provided them with the skills, knowledge and aptitude necessary for life-long learning, employment, better physical and mental health, and full participation in social, economic and political development.

The agreed conclusions called for action on behalf of women and girls by Governments, United Nations agencies, and human rights and civil society groups, among others, in six key areas, including strengthening national legislation, policies and programmes; expanding access and participation in education; strengthening gender-sensitive education and training, including in the field of science and technology; supporting the transition from education to full employment and decent work; increasing retention and progression of women in science and technology employment; and making science and technology responsive to women.

Before the Commission adopted the text, Commission Vice-Chair Filippo Cinti (Italy) said it had been the result of “extensive and intense negotiations”.  Unfortunately, those talks had not been concluded by the deadline for the session’s final scheduled meeting, but agreement late that Friday night was a testament to the willingness of delegations to reach consensus.

In closing remarks, Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations Entity for General Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), said that while the agreed conclusions indeed reflected the commitment of Member States, they were only a “first step” and must be implemented and followed up at the national level.  She called on all Member States to spare no effort to ensure that their aims and objectives were fully addressed, especially in the six key areas of ongoing concern, such as violence against women and the situation of rural women and girls.

(Source:United Nations -Press Releases)
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The 75.8% of women in the Dominican Republic has not used the Internet in the last 12 months, against 24.2% who have used, according the Studies of the Research Center for the female Action (CIPAF) and the National Commission for Information Society and Knowledge (CNSIC), which also highlights a wide digital gap in the female sector of the country (Dominican Republic).

Also, they require that 65% of women have not used the computer in the last 12 months, while yes only 35% had used; while only 38% of households with women heads of households have access to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) against 62% of households are headed by men. The research highlights that although women represent 62% of college tuition, they are only 32% of those enrolled in basic sciences and technologies. In contrast men are 68% of those enrolled in these courses.

"Only 7% of women are studying engineering and / or technologies, as opposed to 15% of men", according to those studies that attribute the situation to stereotypes that society has created, in that essence these carriers are not for women.

Data on these investigations were revealed by the director of CIPAF, licensed Magaly Pineda, and Amparo Arango from the Technical Unit of the National Commission for Information Society and Knowledge (CNSIC), in the project presentation "Gender and Information and Communication Technology (ICT)" held last March 6, in the International Women's Day.

The project that is sponsored by the United Nations (UNWomen), seeks to mainstream the gender perspective in the National Strategy for Information Society and Knowledge in Dominican Republic.

Arango and Pineda advocated that the country adopts policies, programs and strategies to change the present reality to move towards a more equal future, reduce the digital gap and facilitate greater female participation in the direction of society. In its recommendations, the experts suggested to adopt plans that help redress the disadvantage of women face in today's society, and in that sense seek to create math clubs, science and technology as e-girls supermaths; make that the ITLA and INDOTEL establish a center of academic excellence with equality and gender equity and feminist club connected.

Also, may the Community Technology Centers (CTC), set up by the Office First Lady, and more than one thousand Computer Training Centres (ITC) of Indotel, are gender sensitive and that a diagnosis is made on public policies and projects information and communication technologies (ICT) from a gender perspective. They decided on a Plan for Equal Opportunities for Women in the Information Society (PIOMSI-SI) from a process of consultation with women's organizations and women throughout the country.

The presentation of the Gender and ICT project, a proposal that was shown to the Fund for Equal Gender United Nations, was one of the 29 proposals selected for funding by the UN, from a total of 540 proposals from around the world presented, was chaired by the Minister of Women, licensed Alejandrina German, the manager of the Development Fund INDOTEL Telecommunications, Neil Checo licensed, and the director of Cipaf, licensed Magaly Pineda.

During the activity the Spanish political scientist and sociologist Maria Angeles Alonso delivered a lecture on "New Technologies and Gender Equality: Lessons and Challenges from the Spanish experience" (ere).

(Source: Indotel Dominican Republic)

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Young rural females are a priority target population for public health interventions, given that these women typically are (or soon will be) mothers of young children. But development organizations working in Africa say they often face challenges sharing information effectively with these women, for a variety of practical and cultural reasons such as lower access to media and ICTs in rural areas, or social norms preventing women from being active consumers of mass media. For example, the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters published a series of studies in 2008 cataloguing experiences from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Niger, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Ghana, and other countries in which innovative small-scale community radio programs helped to reach and empower an audience that was otherwise difficult to reach.

The projects’ shared hypothesis—that community radio can fill an information gap among women—is in part based on the observation that “without access to information, the poor and marginalized, particularly women, are unaware of their rights and entitlements, are unable to challenge unfare decisions and lack the knowledge to participate as citizens and take effective action to improve their conditions”.

Here we show how the AudienceScapes data on demographic and behavioral characteristics of young rural women in Ghana can provide helpful guidance to development groups (the analysis in this section is based on 307 survey respondents in the “young rural women” category). Few speak English, though most speak languages of the country’s predominant Akan group.

A full quarter of this target group said they had not gotten any information on maternal and infant health in the last year and those respondents were spread throughout the country. Despite the evident lack of information, less than 10 percent expressed any level of dissatisfaction with the information currently available to them about this critical subject.

(Source: AudienceScapes)
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In an attempt to bridge the digital divide, the Sanchar Shakti scheme envisages creating ICT skills among rural women by providing useful information to women about health, social issues and government schemes over their mobile phones. The scheme seeks involvement of women Self Help Groups for its successful implementation.

President Pratibha Patil on Monday launched DoT-USOFs' pilot project Sanchar Shakti, which aims to provide useful information to women, about health, social issues and government schemes over their mobile phones.

The scheme, which is funded by Department of Telecom's (DoT) Universal Service Obligation Funds (USOFs), is for mobile value-added services and information and communication technologies (ICT) related livelihood skills for Women's Self Help Groups.

"The scheme is initiated as a gender budget scheme, it adopts an innovative approach to connect rural women with the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector, by involving women Self Help Groups (SHGs)," Patil told reporters.

It will also serve the purpose of increasing the tele density, as well as broad band connectivity in rural areas, enabling them to join the cyber community and in this way, bridge the digital divide, states the details of the scheme.

With the creation of ICT skills sets in rural areas, over a period of time, these areas can become centres for the consumption and production of various ICT goods and services, including hubs for processing outsourced work, it added.

Patil added, "Real development cannot take root if it bypasses women, who represent the very pivot around which social change takes shape."

(Source:One world South Asia News)

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ITU Secretary-General Dr Hamadoun Touré was one of the international leaders to lend his support to the launch of the new Global Network of Women ICT Decision Makers (podcast), which took place at UN headquarters in New York in conjunction with the 55^th session of the Commission on the Status of Women.

The initiative of Serbia’s Minister of Communications and Information Society, Ms Jasna Matiæ, the network aims to provide support, global information exchange and mentorship for high-placed women in the information and communications (ICT) industry.

Launched by Minister Matiæ and Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director of UN Women, the idea for the network emerged during ITU’s Plenipotentiary Conference in Guadalajara, Mexico, last October. It was subsequently included in Resolution 70 of that conference, garnering overwhelming support from PP-10 delegates.

In a video message to support the launch, Dr Touré said ITU was committed to promoting ICTs as tools to empower women and girls, as well as to encouraging more girls and women into the industry.

“The ICT industry offers many incentives to those looking for abundant career opportunities, engaging, cutting edge work, and substantial remuneration,” Dr Touré said. “In the world today, there are about 850 million young women aged under 24. With the ICT sector now serving as the world’s single biggest growth engine for jobs, we’re going to need their skills, their enthusiasm, and their fresh ideas.”

The ITU Secretary-General went on to express his hope that one of the major achievements of the new Global Network of Women ICT Decision Makers will be to showcase the many talented women working in the ICT field, and to promote these women as inspiring role-models for a new generation of female ICT leaders.

Other high-level leaders supporting the launch included the Ministers of Communication of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Finland, and Qatar, the Secretary-General of the Arab ICT Association, and dignitaries from Senegal and Sweden.

(Source: ITU news)
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As the 55th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) unfolds in New York, FAO urges world leaders to ensure that rural women are fully included in the design, testing and use of agricultural technologies and innovations.

During its annual session to review progress on gender equality and to identify critical areas where challenges remain, CSW invited Member States representatives, United Nations agencies and NGOs from all regions of the world to share experiences and lessons learned on this year’s theme: "Access and participation of women and girls in education, training, science and technology, including for the promotion of women’s equal access to full employment and decent work".

At the CSW, FAO together with IFAD, WFP and the World Bank, held two side events that focused on the practical steps needed to improve rural women’s access to productive technologies. Together with IFAD and the World Bank, FAO presented research and experiences, carried out jointly with IFAD, on the use of agricultural technologies among small and resource-poor farmers, as well as discussed new farming techniques to help increase food security and enhance the livelihoods of rural women and men.

Eve Crowley - Principal Advisor, Gender, Equity and Rural Employment Division - discusses some of the benefits that science and technology brings to rural women, and the obstacles preventing them from taking full advantage of agricultural innovations:

How can science and technology benefit and empower rural women?

Science and technology offers solutions to many challenges faced by rural women: they can contribute to food security by boosting crop yields; reduce women’s domestic and productive work by introducing labour-saving technologies; and increase participation of women in the rural labour market through better communications.

(Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - FAO)

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Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro today underscored the importance of education in raising the status of women in society and called for greater investment in measures to ensure gender equality, deploring the fact that two-thirds of illiterate adults across the world are female.
“Investing in women and girls is a force multiplier,” Ms. Migiro told the opening of the two-week session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women at UN Headquarters. “Not only is education a key driver of economic growth, it is also a catalyst for empowering women,” she added.

Ms. Migiro pointed out that global commitments to achieving universal primary education and gender parity, at all levels of education, have had a beneficial impact on girls’ school enrolment and retention rates in many countries, but the quality of education has not kept pace, particularly in the developing world.

“Many children leave school without basic literacy and numeracy skills. Girls and women are under-represented in science and technology, education and employment. They are simply not getting the knowledge and skills they need for today’s competitive and changing job market.

“Your discussions at this session can help connect the dots among those key issues affecting women’s prospects and well-being,” said Ms. Migiro.

She said the launch of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) will galvanize worldwide efforts to realize the rights and opportunities of women and girls.

“UN Women will build on the strong foundation of international norms and policies developed by the United Nations over decades. It will provide a strong and unified voice. It will work throughout the United Nations system to strengthen coherence and to ensure accountability,” said Ms. Migiro.

(Source: UN News Centre)

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India has underlined the need for the UN to prioritise its goals on gender equality and empowerment of women so as to prevent efforts becoming diffused at a key meeting of the world body. "Unless there is effective prioritisation, efforts will get diffused", Hardeep Singh Puri, India's ambassador to the UN said yesterday.

At the first executive board meeting UN Women, the newly created entity which will focus on the overall condition of females, Puri said it needs to effectively prioritise its goals if it wants to achieve results.

"Our effort should, therefore, be to prioritise the focus on gender equality, the empowerment of women and gender mainstreaming", the top Indian diplomat said. Setting out a 100-day action plan, former Chilean president and now head of UN women, Michelle Bachelet, laid out five priorities.

These included - ending violence against women; ensuring women's full participation in conflict resolution, enhancing women's economic empowerment as well as expanding leadership and participation.

"I am determined that UN Women will be a catalyst for change, offering new energy, drawing on long-standing ideas and values", she told the board. Puri said that from India's national perspective the priority areas Bachelet mentioned were "extremely important."

"These mirror the priorities of our Government as well as the extremely proactive civil society in India", he underlined. The Indian envoy also stressed that lack of coordination among the various UN actors was a major constraint for reform.

"Multiplicity of UN actors in the field had led to lack of accountability and delays in identifying the right agency for cooperation", he said, adding that the 100-day Action Plan rightly addresses this as one of the core principles for UN Women.

Puri, however, pointed out that last year Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had proposed that the UN Women be created with the initial corpus of USD 1 billion but now the target had been set for USD 500 million. "The lower target of USD 500 million should not make us complacent and limit ourselves", he said.

(Source: Hindustantimes)

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Under a blue sky, the air is filled with women’s laughter and songs. It is the perfect setting for the opening of "City of Joy", a joint project of UNICEF and the non-governmental organization V-Day, providing a safe haven for survivors of sexual violence.

City of Joy will serve 180 women between the ages of 14 and 35 every year with psychotherapy an extensive training programme comprising literacy, economics and sexuality education. The project is also supported by the Panzi Foundation, which manages a nearby gynaecological hospital.

Congolese women are the driving force behind City of Joy. Their needs and wishes form the basis of this project, which aims to turn the tide in DR Congo – from women as victims to women as leaders. Created from their vision, City of Joy will be operated by women themselves.

City of Joy marks the latest chapter in the ongoing campaign, ‘Stop Raping our Greatest Resource: Power to the Women and Girls of DRC’, which V-Day and UNICEF launched in 2007. The new project will provide a powerful new platform for women’s empowerment.

“The opening of the City of Joy is the moment where women of the Congo turn their pain to power, where they who have suffered so deeply, so invisibly, will claim their rights, their bodies and their future”, said author and V-Day founder Eve Ensler. “It is a huge privilege and honour to be present at this momentous occasion”.

(Source: UNICEF)

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The fear of technology and the lack of Internet tools are overwhelmed by the seniors, who are most among young people, in the courses offered by the Municipal Economic Development Agency (Conquito) and the “Guambrateca” of San Marcos.

This experience speaks about the level of immersion of these people on this subject, and that their interest has increased in recent years. In these classrooms, 60% of students are over 45 years old. From these, most are older, they learn to use technology productively and inserted in the global world.

In addition, they can expand their mind and leave paradigms as for example "that old age people cannot learn or that are not able to use a computer", this said the assistant of training of Conquito, Andres Endara. In this way, 95% of people change their mentality.

Older adults have one thing in common: fear of starting the courses and interact with technology in their social environment because they have been classified as 'useless' and 'slow' or had spoken with phrases like "they are going to damage the computer, or that you will fill with viruses and you'll burn it", says Endara.

"It is because this psychological disorder that first it is necessary the motivational work and then teach them, step by step, how to handle different technological resources such as the Internet and Office programs", says Ivan Lovato, director of Guambrateca.

"I started from zero, I knew nothing and I was afraid of not being able to learn, but the facilitator filled me with confidence and motivated me to continue", says Norma Nicolalde, who participated in a workshop.

"I thought this was only for young people" and "I'm learning now at my age", these are some of the phrases that Bolivar Armijos (Conquito facilitator) listens from the participants. This, as a result of his constant work with them and lets them to transform their mind.

"I had a lady who was crying just trying to use the mouse, she had tears and for some time I had to work with her to overcome the fear on the computer", says Endara, who was also a facilitator of 'Don Juan' who received the beginners classes for five times, until he received the certificate.

“After completion of training, people are taken into account and they do not feel undeserved because their lack of technology knowledge”, says Adriana Romero, project coordinator of Conquito.

"Now I feel I no longer need someone else to find information on the Internet or make the procedures required in banks and payroll payments", this says Gonzalo Cevallos, private employee. "Also, knowledge has allowed me to develop myself and be independent", he adds.
Endara also said that “the courses allow older people to be productive after retirement".

(Source: La Hora Nacional Newspaper)
Further details

In 10 short years, Wikipedia has accomplished some remarkable goals. More than 3.5 million articles in English? Done. More than 250 languages? Sure. But another number has proved to be an intractable obstacle for the online encyclopedia: surveys suggest that less than 15 percent of its hundreds of thousands of contributors are women.

About a year ago, the Wikimedia Foundation, the organization that runs Wikipedia, collaborated on a study of Wikipedia’s contributor base and discovered that it was barely 13 percent women; the average age of a contributor was in the mid-20s, according to the study by a joint center of the United Nations University and Maastricht University.

Sue Gardner, the executive director of the foundation, has set a goal to raise the share of female contributors to 25 percent by 2015, but she is running up against the traditions of the computer world and an obsessive fact-loving realm that is dominated by men and, some say, uncomfortable for women.

Her effort is not diversity for diversity’s sake, she says. “This is about wanting to ensure that the encyclopedia is as good as it could be,” Ms. Gardner said in an interview on Thursday. “The difference between Wikipedia and other editorially created products is that Wikipedians are not professionals, they are only asked to bring what they know.”

“Everyone brings their crumb of information to the table,” she said. “If they are not at the table, we don’t benefit from their crumb.”

With so many subjects represented — most everything has an article on Wikipedia — the gender disparity often shows up in terms of emphasis. A topic generally restricted to teenage girls, like friendship bracelets, can seem short at four paragraphs when compared with lengthy articles on something boys might favor, like, toy soldiers or baseball cards, whose voluminous entry includes a detailed chronological history of the subject.

(Source:The New York Times)

Further details

Millennia2015, "Women actors of development for the global challenges" is an international research process which gathers women and men determined to enforce the empowerment of women and the respect of human rights in every country. It is a worldwide think-and-action tank supported by a steering committee and thematic or regional communities, counting now more than 1.000 members from all the continents. Millennia2015 invites us to think together until 2015 about those issues in order to build a sustainable future in solidarity for all the women at the horizon 2025.

This research work is built with foresight as a method (www.millennia2015.org/Method) and the information society as context, in solidarity and interaction with those - women and men - who do not have an access to information and communication technologies. It is a collaborative project including research centers, international processes, civil society and all the stakeholders acting towards the same goals.

 Your contribution is very important for Millennia2015's foresight research process. Studying the results of the "information transfer" phase organized in Liege in 2008, we have extracted the 37 variables of Millennia2015. Among them, we would like you to choose the variables that you relate to most, to analyze and document them by answering the questions proposed below and publishing your answers on the online form. We suggest you to collect different testimonies in order to present the situation as precisely as possible. It will also be interesting to study the chosen variables in interaction with others that complete them in order to identify crossed impacts which emerge from the analysis.

 The variable analysis ("fiches variables") you will present will help us to identify the long term issues, the problems and the possible solutions linked to Millennia2015 37 variables in relation with your country, region or community. We will analyze them together to formulate scenarios, to identify the long term issues, to build the vision at the horizon 2025 and the strategy to reach it. As a result, we will build the Millennia2015 Action Plan that will be finalized during the international conference organized at the UNESCO at the end of 2011.

We are conscious of the magnitude of this research and already thank you send your contribution no later than 25 February 2011 by completing the personalized online forms proposed with each variable. All the contributions will be taken into account, valorized and published by Millennia2015. The contributors who will provide a detailed research work for several variables will be invited to participate to the international conference organized under the auspices of the UNESCO in Paris at the end of 2011 for the "knowledge process" phase of Millennia2015.

(Source: UNESCO)
Further details

A new United Nations interagency report on the gender dimension of agricultural work says women still benefit less than men from rural employment and face new challenges due to the current economic and food crises.

The report – “Gender dimensions of agricultural and rural employment: Differentiated pathways out of poverty” – says “although gender inequality varies considerably across regions and sectors, there is evidence that, globally, women benefit less from rural employment, whether in self- or wage-employment, than men do”.

At the same time, the report says that besides other challenges regarding gender disparities in rural employment, “the recent financial and food crises have slowed down the progress towards greater gender equity” and decent work for women in agricultural and rural areas over the past few years. “With job losses and cuts in spending on social services and infrastructure, women’s care burdens and unpaid work have intensified, and their financial contribution to household food security is likely to decrease,” the report says. “This is particularly dramatic for female-headed households”.

The report also cites migration and the feminization of rural activities, international trade and the diversification of the rural economy, and child labour as other issues and trends affecting women employed in agricultural work.

The report by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) brings together the latest thinking on the gender dimension of rural and agricultural work and seeks to promote the debate about the importance of women for rural economic growth and poverty reduction.

The report says some of the factors that may push women into a disadvantage economic position are: employment (occupation and task), segmentation (women are disproportionately employed in low-quality jobs), the gender gap in earnings, and fewer hours of paid work but overall larger work burdens.

As an example, the report says “it is interesting to observe that 90 percent of the wage gap between men and women in developed or developing counties is unexplained: in other words, it is attributed to gender discrimination”.

The report shows that women face discrimination that limits both their economic productivity and their personal development. Women need access to education, training, credit, markets, technical assistance and labour protection. They need equal, secure access to land and other assets. And they need ‘social capital’, including the ability to participate equally with men in farmers’ organizations.

(Source: International Labor Organization)

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Venezuelan Foundation "Infocentro" won UNESCO Prize "Rey Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa" for the Use of Information and Communication Technologies in Education, the organization reported today. The Foundation received the award along with the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education in the United Kingdom, which together will pocket US$ 25,000, according to the UN Agency for Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) in a statement.
 
Selected by the jury because of its project "Literacy technology for adults ", the Foundation "Infocentro" promotes  adults and other users to free access to information and communication technologies, to be trained to learn to Throughout life, they said. The foundation established infocentres in 680 schools around the country and launched a series of teaching modules for high quality, designed for adult learners to improve their computer literacy and acquire more advanced skills in information technology and communication. The winning projects were chosen from 49 nominations from 34 countries, one intergovernmental organization, and the Organization of Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO).
 
Thus, Infocenter has allowed more than one million Venezuelans, including many disabled person, having basic technical knowledge now. The National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) in the UK is the largest NGO dedicated to protecting the interests of adult learners in England and Wales, they said.
 
This year's edition of the award was focused on the "digital basic instruction: to prepare adult learners for learning throughout life and a flexible working life". The General Director of Unesco, Irina Bokova, will present the award in an official ceremony to be held on January 12, 2011 at the headquarters of the Organization in Paris.
(Source: CANTV - Venezuela)
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The Ministry of Information and Communications Technologies, through the appropriation of ICT Division, will present "Internet safe". The initiative aims to protect children and adolescents in the country from all forms of online behavior that might damage its integrity.
 
The Viceminister of ICT, María Carolina Hoyos Turbay, will present the strategy "Internet safe" on November 30. "Internet safe" is a proposal that integrates child protection issues on the network as sexual exploitation, pornography and behaviors that affect the integrity of children and young people in the network. The strategy calls on citizens to actively participate in the prevention of sexual exploitation involving minors on the Internet, to denounce, to maintain a communication from parents, teachers and responsible adults with children emphasizing the importance of safe and able to navigate and enjoy safe.

The name INTERNET SAFE, seeks to identify the media campaign and create an icon that can be used by ISP (Internet Sevice Provider) in its different pages based on Colombian thematic, is a name that means that the Colombian state institutions are active and pending to prevent child pornography.
Further details in www.internetsano.gov.co

(Source: Ministry of Information and Communications thecnologies (MINTIC) -Colombia)
Further details

The National Telecommunications Corporation (CNT EP), pursuant to the provisions of the Law Amending the Law of the Elderly and in accordance with the mandate embedded in the Constitution of Ecuador, benefits more than 18,000 users of older by applying an exemption of 50% in the basic  rent of telephone service and the implementation of special modules for care and recovery.
 
Requirements
Users should approach the Internal Revenue Service, IRS, to apply this exemption and according the  information provided by the regulatory body of citizens, they can determine who qualifies to be exempt and not pay the VAT; in addition to the reduction of consumption by 50% in the basic rent directly.
 
Preferential treatment

Integrated Services Centers, CIS, have physical space to care for the elderly in a comfortable and appropriate place. If it is not feasible to go personally to do some processing of requests for products or services of the CNT, authorize in writing to a relative.

 
It should be noted that in case of death of the user, the privileges gained on the telephone line are automatically lost . To be reinstated, it must make the appropriate assignment of rights in the event that the new user is elderly, and the process begins again.

 
Thus, the Ministry of Telecommunications through the CNT EP complies with national government policies and the development of the good life of citizens, seeking to provide more and better telecommunications and connectivity services throughout the country, backed a solid technology platform.

 

(Source: Mintel – Ecuador)

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Simple mobile technology, like basic cell phones, can be used to save the lives of mothers in childbirth, and improve the care of newborns and children, reaching underserved populations in remote areas. The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH) praises innovation seen at the second mHealth Conference in Washington, and PMNCH Partners’ Forum in New Delhi.

More advanced mobile technology can do even more, such as checking on patients, keeping records, improving diagnosis and treatment in the field, and letting community health workers consult general practitioners and specialists for guidance."With mobile technologies for health, called ‘mhealth’ or ‘mobile health,’ we’re extending capabilities to where they don’t exist today", says David Aylward, who heads mHealth Alliance, a partnership founded by the United Nations Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation and the Vodafone Foundation.

"At the most basic level, mobile phones can be used to keep track of people, call for emergency assistance, remind them of appointments and share information", says Julian Schweitzer, PhD, former Chair of The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Care (PMNCH) and the Chair of the Finance Working Group for the UN Secretary-General's Global Strategy for Women's and Children's Health, launched in September. "But then you can layer on things like check lists, protocols, the steps to ensure a safe birth and action instructions in particular circumstances", says Dr. Schweitzer.

Used by midwives in rural, urban slums and isolated areas, cell phones can also be attached to diagnostic devices, including those used for remote fetal monitoring or remote wireless ultrasound. This lets a midwife or health worker know in advance that a mother must get to a clinic. They can also be used for recording births and deaths or assuring that both women and children get the care they need when and where they need it.

"In the near future, wireless diagnostics like stethoscopes, blood pressure, temperature and insulin monitors, and ultrasounds will enable remote diagnosis and treatment far from the closest doctor or clinic", says Mr. Aylward.

(Source: PMNCH and World Health Organization)

Further details

To coincide with International Day of Rural Women – commemorated every year on 15 October -, Womenwatch launched an updated online feature on “Rural Women and Development” last week ( http://www.un.org/womenwatch/feature/idrw/ )

The International Day of Rural Women directs attention to both the contributions that women make in rural areas and the many challenges they face. Established by the General Assembly in its resolution 62/136 of 18 December 2007, this international day recognizes “the critical roles and contribution of rural women, including indigenous women, in enhancing agricultural and rural development, improving food security and eradicating rural poverty.” Rural women form the backbone of the agricultural labour force across much of the developing world. According to the 2009 ILO Global Employment Trends for Women report, globally, more than a third of the female workforce is engaged in agriculture while in regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, more than 60 per cent of all female employment is in this sector.

You are kindly invited to visit http://www.un.org/womenwatch/feature/idrw/ to view the thematic portal, which includes the SG's message for the 2010 commemoration (in all official UN languages); a new feature article “Investing in rural women contributes to food security” provided by FAO; and links to resources on other UN websites, such as IFAD’s recent publication "Report on the Special Session of the 2010 Farmers’ Forum, Promoting Women’s Leadership in Farmers’ Organizations and Rural Producers’ Organizations."  

The updated online feature/portal on Rural Women and Development complements Womenwatch’s comprehensive directory of UN resources on gender equality and women’s empowerment and Womenwatch’s UN system-wide gender equality newsfeed at http://www.un.org/womenwatch/ungen/.

Womenwatch (http://www.un.org/womenwatch) is an inter-agency project managed by the Division for the Advancement of Women (now part of UN Women) on behalf of the United Nations Inter-agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANWGE). It is a unique knowledge sharing platform, designed to provide access to Internet-based information on all the United Nations entities’ work and the outcomes of the United Nations intergovernmental processes on gender equality and women’s empowerment.

(Source: WomenWatch -United Nations)
Further details

Tostan has come up with an intriguing way to teach basic literacy and numeracy, by tying it to the use of mobile phones, through their Jokko Initiative in Senegal. As part of this program, they teach basic literacy and numeracy to community participants, particularly women and girls.

They teach the cost-efficiency of sms texting relative to placing a call, which has immediate impact on the girls’ lives. They can use their newly acquired ability to read and write in their national language, Wolof, from the Community Empowerment Program, to compose and read text messages without assistance. Then, participants apply the skills they’ve gained to specific themes (such as health, agriculture, and the environment) relevant to their everyday lives. For example, to send text messages about vaccinations and awareness-raising campaigns, to make appointments at health clinics, and to ask for advice on matters concerning health and hygiene.

Tostan, UNICEF, and the Center of Evaluation for Global Action (CEGA) at the University of California, Berkeley, recently completed an evaluation of Jokko that shows great promise for using text messaging as a means for improving literacy and community development.

(Sources: ETD)

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Telenor Serbia Foundation, founded by Telenor Serbia in March 2007, continues to resolve targeted social and educational problems that Serbian society faces. The Telenor Foundation mainly focuses on youth, their education and professional advancement, socially vulnerable groups and the development of cultural production and the art market.

Its “Internet for all Project” aims to promote and increase the Internet use among its citizens. Serbia is lagging behind developed European countries in Internet use. Only 32 percent of the population in Serbia uses the Internet, which is significantly lower than the European average of 49 percent. The majority of the Serbian students do not have access to Internet at home, some of them not even to computers. The “Internet for all project“ has the main goal of providing unlimited access to the Internet for a period of one year to students.

Telenor Serbia also supports an information center for people with disabilities by providing a free telephone line, Internet access and technical support. By calling toll-free, users get information and advice from experts in a number of areas including law, education, social and health related matters, and other relevant issues of particular importance to this group. At the same time, user suggestions are directed to specialized institutions and organizations.

Telenor has also partnered with the Ministry of Health and UNICEF to promote a more efficient and better-quality health support to Roma families in Serbia.The project was kicked-off with a one-day training course for Roma healthcare mediators by providing technical equipment and solutions from Telenor. A special tariff package and mobile phone will enable the mediators to call each other free of charge and inform the families they are assisting. At the same time, they were given laptops with special software which will make it possible to more efficiently report to and communicate with the institutions. 60 mediators in 50 towns in Serbia are taking part in this project. Mediators are Roma women and mothers with completed elementary education. For them this project is an opportunity to find employment.

From the start of the project in 2008 the mediators have made 56,178 visits and recorded 102,661 Roma for the project purposes. “Apart from recording the Roma settlements, we have provided personal identification documents and medical care cards for 5,677 persons, vaccinated 4,800 children, controlled 1,672 pregnant women and expecting mothers“, says Dubravka Šaranović, senior adviser in the Ministry of Health. 

(Sources: Telenor Serbia Foundation)

Further Details

The president of Chile, Sebastián Piñera, signed the regulation project on teleworking in order to improve the labor market and incorporate those who are not part of it, such as youth, women and the elderly people.

One way to encourage the entry of women into the labor market is encouraging teleworking. Today, female participation rates in Chile are low compared with the rest of the world. To meet the standards of the OECD, more than 700.000 women should be working.

The project protects the rights of workers to create a new "contract of employment at a distance" that will join to the current Labour Code. Also, the project allows a fair and appropriate contractual flexibility with respect to the old model.

The working in this new system will not be subject to a maximum of 45 hours per week, but if the employer requires certain times of connection, there must ensured a minimum of 10 continuous hours of rest. Also, a proposal is to provide to the worker, at least,  24-hours continuous break, after 144 hours worked. As for weekends, this may also be agreed between the parties. The employee may have two Sundays in a month or a break that includes Saturday and Sunday.

Source: Gobierno de Chile
Further details

With the objective of facilitating the access of poor pregnant women to health services, Peruvian University Cayetano Heredia (UPCH), the Division of Science and Technology of Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and Telefonica Movistar, presented the project "WAWANET: Connecting for improved maternal and child health in Peru", which call the innovative use of mobile telephony as a tool to raise levels of maternal and child health.

 

"WAWANET" aims to raise the levels of access, for low-income pregnant women, to health care system with the support of mobile technology, through Text Messages (SMS). In addition, the project aims to integrate an electronic medical record system with mobile technologies, all with the aim of improving information systems for mother and child.

 

 The pilot project will run initially in the Constitutional Province of Callao, benefiting 5.000 pregnant women in their early stages, where the UPCH has been working in maternal health projects since early 2009.

Escuchar

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Source: Telefonica Movistar and IDB
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Through its program "Unlimited Potential", Microsoft Peru made a donation (in cash and software) to the organization "YES Peru" to implement the project "Digital Literacy Infocentre", which seeks to provide training in the use of virtual tools.

This project will let that low-income youth people from San Juan de Lurigancho, as well as women from grassroots organizations, can be trained in the use of virtual tools (E-business, E-Governance, among others). They can ensure their integration into the labor market and improve their life expectancy. With a duration of one year, this initiative will benefit 500 young people from the area and approximately 250 women and it hopes to be replicated in other parts of the country.

(Source:Universia Peru)
Further details

Hole in the wall started off as an interesting experiment by a computer scientist, Dr. Sugata Mitra, in which he installed a high tech computer on his office wall facing a slum and left it for the children to explore it. Astonishingly children learnt surfing in a single day!

In 1999 the International Finance Corporation, a World Bank subsidiary, invested $1.6 million in a project entitled ‘Hole in the Wall’, in which computer kiosks were placed in urban slums so that street children with almost no education could gain access to computer technology. They found that the children would teach each other how to use these computers. The project encourages underprivileged children in India to learn from a web-based curriculum through Internet kiosks. The kiosks were installed in over 60 locations over three years (2000-2003). The aim was to improve education for poor children, with equal access for girls and boys.

Already ubiquitous in New Delhi and Mysore, the Hole-in-the-wall systems were then spread throughout the country including the under served areas of Rajhastan and Jaipur and the difficult terrains of Kashmir. The Hole in the wall education limited (HIWEL) has now expanded and reached upto the northern states of Mizoram and Nagaland. Such is the popularity of the project that it has crossed the borders and become a part of the commonwealth connects program in Uganda and now (according to recent news) making its way for being piloted in UK.

HIWEL has been conferred the coveted ‘Digital Opportunity Award’ by the World Information Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA) and 2010 HASTAC/MacArthur Digital Media and Learning Award.

(Sources:UNESCO Bangkok Educational Resources)

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The Government of Malta launched an initiative entitled "Vision 2015 and Beyond" that, amongst other aspects, recognized the importance of ICTs as a tool to improve the economic well being of the country.  Last week, Charlò Bonnici, Parliamentary Assistant in the Ministry for Infrastructure, Transport, and Communications, announced the beginning of the Second Step Training Program.  This program enables participants to earn ICT National Diplomas in one of three areas: information systems, information technology, and computing and information systems.  Participants who graduate from the program receive a diploma that is nationally recognized by the Malta Qualifications Recognition Information Center, and internationally recognized due to the high quality of training that participants will receive from Edexcel (BTEC), which is the UK's largest qualifications awarding body who operates in over 100 countries.

The Second Step program was initiated with the goal of educating target groups of adults, specifically women in the manufacturing industry, currently employed and unemployed in basic ICT skills so that the ambition of the government to develop Malta into a center of technological excellence can be achieved.  A statement made by the Malta Information Technology Agency chairman Claudio Grech noted that the economy's needs for skilled ICT professionals are not being met, and that although Malta has made great strides in terms of students graduating with ICT skills, it is not enough to sustain the economy's needs.  Through the Second Step Program, adults who are currently in the workforce can improve their employment potential.  The program takes two years to complete, and can be taken on a part time or full time basis.  Once applications have been received and processed, classes will begin in the fall.

(Sources: The Malta Independent Online and The Malta Information Technology Agency)

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The Women's Technology Empowerment Centre (W.TEC) is a Nigerian non-governmental organization with a goal to educate and empower Nigerian women through teaching them skills and applications of ICTs.  W.TEC runs a variety of programs for all ages, for girls, young women, older women, and actively keeps in contact with program alumni to help them maintain current ICT skills.  This year, W.TEC will host the third W.TEC Girls Technology Camp in Lagos, Nigeria from 8 to 14 August 2010.  This one week residential camp helps to develop technology literacy in secondary school girls, along with instructing them on various applications of technologies, such as career options related to technology or engineering.

Oreoluwa Somolu, the Executive Director of W.TEC, explained that the Nigerian technology industry is mostly dominated by men; although women strive to enter the industry, it can often be a difficult tast.  The W.TEC girls camp is a long term solution to this problem, with supporters including the Nigerian Television Authority Channel 10, Omatek Computers, Rutgers College in New Jersey, USA, and Laureates College in Lagos.  Although this year students will have to pay to attend the camp, their fee of N50,000 covers everything the camp provides, including food, lodging, course materials, and other camp offerings. Once participants complete the camp, they will be encouraged to actively use ICTs to improve their futures and their everyday lives.

(Sources: Technology Times and W.TEC)

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The Tunisian Chamber of Women Entrepreneurs (CNFCE) organized on Wednesday in Hammamet the Mediterranean Forum of Women Entrepreneurs under the theme, "Globalization of trade: what place does the Mediterranean woman occupy”.

 The event is organized in cooperation with the “INVEST in MED” program and the Women Entrepreneurs Committee under the Mediterranean Chambers of Commerce and Industry Association (ASCAME).

Women entrepreneurs from the 5 Maghrebi countries from Europe, as well as experts and university professors, took part in the event. The forum dealt with two major objectives namely the consolidation of trade relations between women heads of Mediterranean enterprises and facilitating access to external markets.

(Source: Tunisia Online News)

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In March 2010, the Commission on the Status of Women will undertake a fifteen-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly.   Emphasis will be placed on the sharing of experiences and good practices, with a view to overcoming remaining obstacles and new challenges, including those related to the Millennium Development Goals.  Member States, representatives of non-governmental organizations and of UN entities will participate in the session.  A series of parallel events will provide additional opportunities for information exchange and networking.

More information:

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing15/index.html

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/beijing15/

 

Source: WomenWatch

 

e-Sri Lanka is the project of government of Sri Lanka to provide access to “diverse and unrestrained” information and communication sources in a bid to strengthen democracy, peace process, quality of life and social and economic development. “Nanasala Project” refers to several models of tele-centres established all across Sri Lanka for provision of ICT based services. Information Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) has set up different types of Nansalas (Knowledge centers) with regards to the services being provided.
[Image:Colombo Fort Railway Station Nansala (left)

Rural Knowledge Nansalas (Vishwa Denuma Gamata or global knowledge to village) include multi-service ICT centers providing internet, telephone, fax, computer training classes and other services for socio-economic development and community empowerment.

E-library Nansala (community model) is the smaller version of the rural knowledge where few free and few paid services are provided. CBTs, books and lots of periodicals for students of all ages. The e-library concept has also been successfully evolved into mobile e-library which has solar panels on roof powering four laptops and travelling from schools to schools and village to village disseminating information to children, youth and local farmers.

Distance and e-Learning centers (DELs) provide networking facilities like Videocon, Mulitmedia and computer labs etc for connectivity to local and global development learning networks. DELs are specifically aimed at increasing skill level of the people at the suburban areas. [Image: E-learning Centre (above-right)]

Tsunami Camp Nansalas were the special types of kiosks setup in Tsunami affected areas providing information on health, education and similar content in local languages free of cost. “Tsunami Voices” database maintained records of Tsunami victims, their belongings, losses, diseases etc which was helpful in rehabilitation process. ICTA provided ICT training and vocational training to youth and got them involved in volunteer activities for making these nansalas permanent.

These Nansalas have made Sri Lanka stand tall in IT world, by empowering the disabled through ICTs for earning their livelihood and supporting the other disabled through effective use of ICTs.
They have provided equal opportunities for the visually impaired people too. [Image (above-left) Pushpa Rekha: The Nansala Operator]

These Nansalas have also empowered the women by providing them with education, employment and strong position in local communities. Several of the Nansala operators are women.


Counseling for a member of local handicapped community (right)

The IT for Rural Schools Program was started in 1995, with the objective of minimizing educational inequality by providing rural school teachers, students, and children with disabilities with access to computer technology. The project covers some 72 rural schools across Thailand.

Launched in 1998, the Learn and Have Fun with CAI for Primary School Students Project has the main function of identifying quality CAI software from abroad for use in Thai primary schools, and integrating this software initially into three subject areas: math, science, and English. The project also includes staff development to train teachers in the full and effective use of the CAI software in their classes.

RH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn believes that if prison inmates are trained in skills that are of a practical use and in high demand, such as computer skills, they will have a better chance of finding a good job after their sentences are finished and of becoming good citizens of benefit to society. Acting on this belief, Her Royal Highness launched the IT for Inmates Program under the Princess’s IT Project. The Program began at Bang hen Central Women’s Prison at Khlong Prem in 1997. In 1992, the Technical Information Access Center under the National Science and Technology Development Agency hired the prison inmates to type Thai and English journal indexes. At present, numerous organizations offer the inmates typing jobs. Between 1992 and 2003, the inmates earned a combined total of approximately 160,000 baht in this way. Later, the prisoners also learnt computer graphics. At present, the average accumulated income generated as a result of this Program is about 50,000 baht per month.

In 2003, HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn provided an opportunity for the inmates to contribute to society by taking part in the production of audio books for the blind. This project came about through collaboration among three bodies: the Princess’ IT Project, the Thai Blind Association and Bangkhen Women’s Prison. Initially, some 47 inmates participated in the project, 35 of whom read, while the other 12 carried out audio editing using the computers. By the end of 2003, this group of inmates was expected to have produced a total of 1,000 hours of audio books.

Further details can be seen in this report. Source: UNESCO Bangkok online resources

Featuring an interview with Rwanda's President Paul Kagame, this film illustrates how ICT serves as a cross-cutting enabler in helping Rwanda to achieve the 6 Pillars of its Vision 2020, and how the World Bank's eRwanda project is contributing to the process.

In its Vision 2020 plan, the Government of Rwanda aims to transform the country from a largely agriculture-based economy to a knowledge and information based economy, in an effort to reach middle income status by 2020. The Government has emphasized its intention to use investment in ICT as the key driver for this transition and as a vehicle for improving the delivery of public and private services, particularly in the rural areas.

The World Bank's eRwanda project emphasizes the use of technology as an enabler to growth and development, and focuses on core activities, applications and content which have the greatest impact for the citizens. The project aims to improve efficiency and effectiveness of some internal processes of the Government of Rwanda, as well as the delivery of social services in selected key sectors. The Movie available here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UYBw0nSr1o&NR=1

ITU launches the "International Women's Day-09" web-site

8 March- International Women's Day

History

International Women's Day (8 March) is an occasion marked by women's groups around the world. This date is also commemorated at the United Nations and is designated in many countries as a national holiday. When women on all continents, often divided by national boundaries and by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic and political differences, come together to celebrate their Day, they can look back to a tradition that represents at least nine decades of struggle for equality, justice, peace and development.

International Women's Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women to participate in society on an equal footing with men. In ancient Greece, Lysistrata initiated a sexual strike against men in order to end war; during the French Revolution, Parisian women calling for "liberty, equality, fraternity" marched on Versailles to demand women's suffrage.

The idea of an International Women's Day first arose at the turn of the century, which in the industrialized world was a period of expansion and turbulence, booming population growth and radical ideologies. Following is a brief chronology of the most important events:

1909

In accordance with a declaration by the Socialist Party of America, the first National Woman's Day was observed across the United States on 28 February. Women continued to celebrate it on the last Sunday of that month through 1913.

1910

The Socialist International, meeting in Copenhagen, established a Women's Day, international in character, to honour the movement for women's rights and to assist in achieving universal suffrage for women. The proposal was greeted with unanimous approval by the conference of over 100 women from 17 countries, which included the first three women elected to the Finnish parliament. No fixed date was selected for the observance.

1911

As a result of the decision taken at Copenhagen the previous year, International Women's Day was marked for the first time (19 March) in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, where more than one million women and men attended rallies. In addition to the right to vote and to hold public office, they demanded the right to work, to vocational training and to an end to discrimination on the job.

Less than a week later, on 25 March, the tragic Triangle Fire in New York City took the lives of more than 140 working girls, most of them Italian and Jewish immigrants. This event had a significant impact on labour legislation in the United States, and the working conditions leading up to the disaster were invoked during subsequent observances of International Women's Day.

1913-1914

As part of the peace movement brewing on the eve of World War I, Russian women observed their first International Women's Day on the last Sunday in February 1913. Elsewhere in Europe, on or around 8 March of the following year, women held rallies either to protest the war or to express solidarity with their sisters.

1917

With 2 million Russian soldiers dead in the war, Russian women again chose the last Sunday in February to strike for "bread and peace". Political leaders opposed the timing of the strike, but the women went on anyway. The rest is history: Four days later the Czar was forced to abdicate and the provisional Government granted women the right to vote. That historic Sunday fell on 23 February on the Julian calendar then in use in Russia, but on 8 March on the Gregorian calendar in use elsewhere.

Since those early years, International Women's Day has assumed a new global dimension for women in developed and developing countries alike. The growing international women's movement, which has been strengthened by four global United Nations women's conferences, has helped make the commemoration a rallying point for coordinated efforts to demand women's rights and participation in the political and economic process. Increasingly, International Women's Day is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of women's rights.

The Role of the United Nations

Few causes promoted by the United Nations have generated more intense and widespread support than the campaign to promote and protect the equal rights of women. The Charter of the United Nations, signed in San Francisco in 1945, was the first international agreement to proclaim gender equality as a fundamental human right. Since then, the Organization has helped create a historic legacy of internationally agreed strategies, standards, programmes and goals to advance the status of women worldwide.

Over the years, United Nations action for the advancement of women has taken four clear directions: promotion of legal measures; mobilization of public opinion and international action; training and research, including the compilation of gender desegregated statistics; and direct assistance to disadvantaged groups. Today a central organizing principle of the work of the United Nations is that no enduring solution to society's most threatening social, economic and political problems can be found without the full participation, and the full empowerment, of the world's women.

Source: www.un.org