Region

The digital gender inequality is not homogeneous; it is intersectional and affects women business owners and entrepreneurs to a greater extent in all APEC economies. The adoption of new digital technologies has proved to bring personal and social benefits.

Gender inequalities are present in all dimensions in which women business owners and entrepreneurs participate in ICTs. They face obstacles to make full use of them due to a lack of financial resources, less availability of devices and infrastructure, a lack of ICT knowledge and skills, as well as a misperception about the importance that technology has in their lives. (EQUALS, 2019). A factor that contributes to the increasing digital gender inequality is the overload of unpaid care tasks for the family, which leaves women with less free time available to explore cyberspace and develop new digital skills. The lack of digital skills is one of the main barriers that women business owners and entrepreneurs face when trying to consolidate their enterprises and achieving financial sustainability. Worldwide, the digital skills gap is larger than the connection gap. This manifests itself in all levels, from the most basic: using a smartphone, surfing the Internet, using social media or knowing how to record information in digital media and even most sophisticated, such as the development of programs (software) or the analysis of large amounts of data (big data and analytics). Digital illiteracy, lack of familiarity with digital technologies and lack of time to explore them, leave women business owners and entrepreneurs with a lower level of awareness and knowledge about the potential that these technologies offer. As a result of all this, digital gender inequality has been increasing as technologies have become more expensive and sophisticated (UNESCO, 2019).

This project will conduct a training program to share best practices derived from other APEC economies and international organizations to reduce the digital gender inequality in APEC economies, focusing on capacity building and upgrading skills that could have transformative impacts in equal access to technology and learning opportunities for women business owners and entrepreneurs, so they can develop capabilities to meet future trends and new economic activities.

Eligibility and Fund Priorities

This project meets the eligibility criteria of the Policy Partnership on Women and the Economy (PPWE) Sub-fund, as it focuses on the following pillars: a) Skills, capacity building, and health; b) Innovation and technology. Furthermore, the project's aim to boost the capacity of APEC economies to address the digital gender inequality and is in line with the sub-fund's criteria for capacity building activities for the benefit of APEC developing economies.

The project's approach to identifying best practices from other APEC economies and international organizations in the region and using evidence-based data from the Women and the Economy Dashboard and other sources ensures a data-driven and informed implementation. Finally, by addressing the challenges faced by the digital gender inequality, the project supports APEC fundamental priority of enhancing women's economic participation.

Capacity Building

This project will enhance the capacity of APEC member economies, in particular developing economies, by raising awareness of the barriers that limit women business owners and entrepreneurs’ digital access in the Asia-Pacific region. By examining successful experiences derived from other APEC economies and international organizations and gathering input from diverse experts from other APEC economies, the project will help identify opportunities around reducing the digital gender inequality, reskilling and upskilling mechanisms for digital literacy tailored to women’s needs.

Specifically by learning how to: reduce barriers of participation for women, foster their economic empowerment, enable support networks, enhance their professional and personal development, improve access to resources and improve greater autonomy and agency for their lifetime in the digital age. Consequently, the project’s ultimate goal is to reduce economic disparities among APEC economies and improve economic potential of women in the Asia Pacific region, which aligns with APEC's goals of sustainable growth and equitable development and reducing economic disparities. The reduction of the gender digital inequality will ultimately lead to employing more women business owners and entrepreneurs and incorporating new skills and talents to the economy and society, with a positive impact for economic development in response to the quickly changing digital landscape.