UN report shows lack of women in digital research
There is hardly any improvement in the number of women working with digital research. Globally the share of female researchers, at 31.5%, has barely budged since 2011, UN Women says in a report called Gender Snapshot. The report shows that none of the indicators for gender equality are being met. It calls for decisive action and increased investments.
“At current rates, gender parity in parliaments remains a distant dream, potentially not achievable until 2063. It will still take a staggering 137 years to lift all women and girls out of poverty. And about 1 in 4 girls continue to be married as children”, the UN Women report says.
“Nearly all countries have gender gaps in digital skills and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) which significantly impacts the participation and leadership of women and girls in innovation and digital transformation.”
“Underrepresentation is influenced by stereotypes operating at many levels. For instance, the stereotyped perception that girls are less interested in engineering and computer science has been identified in children as young as the age of 6.”
“As a result, women account for only 1 in 3 (35%) of STEM graduates, and globally the share of female researchers, at 31.5%, has barely budged since 2011.”
An exception is Central and Southern Asia which saw an increase from 20.4% to 26.9% in 2021.”
“In 2022, women made up less than one in four employees in science, engineering and ICT jobs, which limits their roles in decision-making and influence in the technological design and deployment process.”
The report says that gender and intersectional perspectives in technology and innovation could accelerate progress, including through artificial intelligence and digital initiatives linked to agritech, fintech, e-health, e-governance and edtech, among others.
“Targeted measures to build more inclusive digital ecosystems should both accelerate women’s entry into and retention in the digital economy, and comprehensively integrate social, economic and environmental factors into the design and deployment of emerging technologies.”
But it is not only negative. The report also notes progress worldwide on gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment.
“Women hold one in every four parliamentary seats, a significant rise from a decade ago. The share of women and girls living in extreme poverty has finally dipped below 10% following steep increases during the COVID-19 pandemic years.
“However…. At current rates, gender parity in parliaments remains a distant dream, potentially not achievable until 2063.
The report reveals the undeniable truth: progress is achievable, but is not fast enough,” says Sima Bahous, UN Women Executive Director.
The report stresses the cost of gender inequality saying an example is that the annual global cost of countries failing to adequately educate their young populations is over USD 10 trillion.
“Low- and middle-income countries can lose another USD 500 billion in the next five years by not closing the digital gender gap.”
“The costs of inaction on gender equality are immense, and the rewards of achieving it are far too great to ignore. We can only achieve the 2030 Agenda with the full and equal participation of women and girls in every part of society,” says Li Junhua, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs.
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