GENDER EQUALITY AND EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN AND GIRLS IN THE UK

GENDER EQUALITY AND EMPOWERMENT
OF WOMEN AND GIRLS IN THE UK:
Meeting the challenge of the Sustainable Development Goals
SUCCESSES
There is an upsurge in women, both professionals
and non-professionals, taking the initiative to promote,
support and develop in tech – from international to
local, and general to niche disciplines, such as BCS
Women, Geekettes, Stemettes, Women 2.0 and Black
Girls Code. This is alongside wide-ranging initiatives
to bring girls and women into STEM education and
employment.
Digital technology has opened up new spaces across
the UK, epitomised in the rise of Mumsnet, for women’s
voices to come together virtually and be heard, get
advice and support, and to campaign for change.
Tech has enabled high-profile, wide-reaching and
successful campaigns by women, notably the £5
banknote campaign, stopping the removal of women
and feminism from the Politics A level syllabus, and the
criminalising of rape porn following a 72,000 signature
petition. In 2016 a petition to make it illegal to require
women to wear high heels at work easily reached, in a
matter of days, the 100,000 benchmark needed to
trigger a parliamentary debate.
PRIORITIES AND GAPS
Technology can increase women’s voice, influence
and power by enabling individual and collective action,
but there is only limited evidence that this is as yet
fundamentally challenging gender-based power
structures. Conversely, it can also be used to perpetrate
misogyny and abuse towards women and girls, and
there is increased risk to women’s safety, equality
and rights through technology-facilitated abuse.
Women are largely absent from the development
and deployment of technology, and this makes it less
likely to meet women’s needs, marking a significant
loss to society and economy as a whole. While there
are examples of technological solutions for women,
notably in women’s health, there are significant gaps;
one stakeholder cited the lack of technological
solutions for parenting as a clear example of the
failure of developers to consider life from a woman’s
perspective. Globally there is a demand for tech
development to be more participatory and user-driven;
women need to be perceived as ‘active users’ of ICT,
not just passive recipients, for technology to be truly
empowering. The exponential increase in ‘big data’,
computing power and data analysis has unrealised
potential to promote gender equality. The UK needs to
scale up activity on STEM education and employment
initiatives for girls and women and make the internet
a safe space for girls and women of all ages.
Case study – TechMums/Women’s Digital League
TechMums provide workshops for mums in deprived
areas of England to gain a basic tech education.
This group of women often lack the skills essential
for most employment, or to become entrepreneurs.
Founder Dr Sue Black emphasises the life-changing
power of addressing the exclusion gap that arises
from not having skills that ‘most people don’t
even think about, because it’s so easy,’ and the
power that enabling mums to be tech role models
can deliver. Dr Sue Black, who has advised the
UK Government Digital Service, passionately
advocates for better tech education for all to
address exclusion.
In common with TechMums, the Women’s Digital
League in Karachi, Pakistan promotes education in
digital work, but also operates as a virtual digital
assistance company, providing freelance digital
services to businesses from women at risk of high
unemployment. Described as a ‘virtual assistance
company’ the Women’s Digital League works in
both rural and urban areas; the project focuses
on individual empowerment and community
development, as well as economic opportunities.
Stakeholders in Wales told us they are exploring
the potential for the model to be developed to
support women in areas of high unemployment.
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