education2@fawco.org
Education Articles
27 February 2023
Increased Empowerment for Women in The Digital Age (SDG Targets 4.1, 4.2, 4.5)
by Devinder Buttar, AWC London
A world full of empowered women isn’t one where men are marginalized. It’s a world where everyone thrives. ― Purnima Mane
International Women’s Day (IWD), on March 8, 2023, will focus largely on how technology and education in the digital age can help the empowerment of women and girls across the world. With the theme “DigitALL Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality,” IWD aligns seamlessly with the main theme for the upcoming 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW67): “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls.”
Historically, major technological advances have always caused seismic societal changes – economic and cultural – which have had major impacts on women and their role in society. The Industrial Revolution is one example where, in addition to a wider distribution of wealth and women entering paid employment, mass migration lead to the breakup of the extended family for a smaller nuclear unit. Similarly, the Digital Age will also be a catalyst for change in empowering women, with easy access to information as the “tool” being used. Innovations in technology have the potential to address a myriad of areas where women are underprivileged: knowledge and information, reproductive health, infrastructure, livelihoods and mobility, among others. Access to technologies such as the internet, mobile phones and social media can educate and empower women on individual, economic, social and political levels.
