The Digital Divide

Pauline Mathew
Jul 20, 2017 · 3 min read

“Do you have an email id?”

The girl, a seventeen-year-old, shakes her head in the negative. Her mother, a well-dressed middle aged woman, is posed the same question; the response is identical. The mother murmurs something about having created one years ago, but she no longer remembers the password.

This scene took place in an Akshaya center, with the mother-daughter duo utilizing its services to apply for the daughter’s class 11 enrollment. It was witnessed by this author herself, and was told that this is a common scenario, all over India.

The year is now 2017 — more than thirty years since the advent of the internet. Yet, women continue to be a minority in the digital space. This is a digital divide, one that has arisen along the lines of a previously existing social divide. It deprives women of the ability to fulfill their potential, and denies them the opportunity to be independent citizens. In a world that is being increasingly governed by the Internet, this is indeed unacceptable.

Granted, there are a large number of women who have stepped into the digital space — and many who have conquered it. However, that remains a relatively small percentage. Moreover, many women limit themselves to social media networks and entertainment websites, never truly realizing the power of the Internet.

Why do women lag behind men in the ownership of technology and the development of technological skills? For what possible reason would they shy away from a platform that gives them access to unlimited resources, to opportunities in education, jobs, business and whatnot?

There is an obvious answer — they simply do not know how to. Insufficient knowledge regarding the ways of accessing an internet connection, or about specific mobile apps that would suit their needs — or in some cases, a total lack of knowledge regarding the use of computers altogether — could very well be the reason. But this is an answer that raises a pertinent question: Why can’t they learn?

To tackle this issue of digital literacy, this is the problem that must be addressed. The sociological and psychological factors that do not allow women to be digitally empowered must be confronted. A woman who tries to learn the seemingly complex processes involved in something as essential as online banking is often dissuaded, and more often than not, women are conditioned by convention to “leave the finances to the men”. Even if she wishes to learn it by herself, she does not how to access tutorials that she can understand. While there are a great number of women who operate such facilities with ease, we do not realize that there are just as many, if not more, who just need a helping hand.

As the situation differs, so does these invisible restraints. Concerns over cyber security hold back some, while some others cannot handle the silent criticism they have to face for reasons unfathomable.

The solutions to this problem cannot be found overnight. Yet, there are many ways in which we can start. For one, digital literacy resources must be easily available, so that people can figure it out at their own pace.

Moreover, women must encourage each other to explore the digital territory — that too beyond the social media sites and WhatsApp. They must help each other out, and help themselves.

GoDigital

encouraging women to explore the frontiers of the digital world

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Pauline Mathew

Written by

GoDigital

GoDigital

encouraging women to explore the frontiers of the digital world

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