UN digital agency tackles its gender gap
ITU News
The tech industry is notoriously male dominated.
Today, women still account for only 30 per cent of science and technology professionals worldwide.
Historically, similar patterns held true at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the 158-year-old steward of global connectivity that 76 years ago became one of the specialized agencies of the United Nations.
But a quarter of a century ago, ITU’s Member States – representing nearly every country in the world – resolved to change the pattern and strive pro-actively for gender equality. Resolution 70, adopted by the organization’s 1998 Plenipotentiary Conference, affirms their commitment to include a gender perspective in all ITU work and activities.
Since then, women have achieved leadership positions in nearly every part of the organization. A woman became ITU Secretary-General for the first time in January 2023.
25 years of women stepping up
A few key trailblazers stand out in the timeline of women stepping up at ITU:
- Lyndall Shope-Mafole (South Africa) was the first women to chair the ITU Council, taking the role on in 1999, just a year after the key gender mainstreaming resolution.
- Audrey Loridan-Baudrier (France) was ITU’s first woman Study Group Chair, achieving the key post with the expert group on strategies and policies in ITU’s Development Sector (ITU-D Study Group 1) in 2002.
- In 2003, Dr Veena Rawat (Canada) chaired World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) and took the helm at the ITU Radiocommunication Sector group studying satellite services (ITU-R Study Group 1).
- Marie-Thérèse Alajouanine (France) became the first woman Study Group Chair in the ITU Standardization Sector (ITU-T), heading the group for operational aspects of service provision, networks, and performance (ITU-T Study Group 2) starting in 2005.
- In another first for women, Dr Hessa Al Jaber (Qatar) chaired ITU’s World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC) in 2006.
- In 2008, Julie Napier Zoller (US) became the first woman to chair the key Radio Regulations Board.
- Roxanne McElvane Webber (US) became chair of ITU’s Telecommunication Development Advisory Group in 2018.
ITU interview: Roxanne McElvane Webber
In the last five years, ITU has managed to crack – though not yet shatter – the glass ceiling.
As gender equality continued gaining traction across the UN system, ITU’s Member States chose the first women for any of the specialized agency’s five elected leadership posts. Doreen Bogdan-Martin (US) was first elected as Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau in 2018 and then as ITU Secretary-General in 2022.
Where we are now
Still, just like in the tech sector at large, women remain underrepresented at ITU – especially in more senior roles.
The organization, however, is committed to raising awareness and challenging biases through gender campaigns and training. In all areas of its work, ITU encourages dialogue and discussion on gender equality, diversity, and inclusion.
Explore gender statistics for:
Resolution 70 remains ITU’s guiding decision on gender equality. ITU’s governing body meetings are now consciously gender-responsive, with Member States being urged to nominate more women to leadership positions until each part of the organization achieves approximate gender parity.
Header image credit: ITU/D. Woldu
