Tunis seminar discusses technology gender gap

2009-07-07

Women are underrepresented in the information and communication technology sector in the Arab world, which limits its ability to develop. Reasons frequently given are technological illiteracy or traditional mentalities.

By Mona Yahia for Magharebia in Tunis – 07/07/09

[Fethi Belaid/AFP/Getty Images] The number of Tunisian women majoring in information technology studies is on the rise.

Officials and advocates of women's rights from Arab countries urged their governments to minimise the gap between genders in the access to information technology, and to provide equal opportunities to work in the sector.

The call came during a seminar held in Tunis on Thursday (July 2nd) under the theme "Arab Women: Basic Pillar for Building the Information Society." It was organised by the Arab Information and Communication Technologies Information Organisation (AICTO).

"It is important to exchange experiences and expertise to support women's role in building the information sector," said AICTO Secretary-General Khadeja Guariani.

The seminar followed up on recommendations from the Tunisian World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in 2005. At the summit, Tunisia affirmed its commitment to empowering women in the information sector, and to promote women's contribution in the decision-making process.

"We discovered that women are largely marginalised in the ICT sector, in terms of their access to technology or the attention given to Arab scientists and researchers," said Wadouda Badran, Director General of the Arab Women's Organisation. "Now, we should work on eliminating technical illiteracy to enable women to participate more efficiently in developing our societies."

The gap between genders in the information technology sector in the Arab world can be traced back to many reasons, including access to the technology itself. According to Aziz Helali, head of the Mediterranean Federation for Internet Associations, women's access to modern information and communication technologies in Arab countries is just 4%. "It's because of the high rates of illiteracy among women, especially in poorer countries, as well as existing economic disparity," he said.

At the opening of the seminar on Thursday, Sarah Kanoun Jarai, Tunisian Minister of Women's Affairs, Family and Children and the Elderly, said that building a society with equal opportunities in the digital sector requires a boost in women's abilities and responsibilities and guarantees of equal participation for both genders.

Mona Zouib, a student, said that the reason why women fail to integrate within the information technology sector "can be attributed to the predominant mentalities" in some areas, like in Gulf countries, "which forbid women from driving".

In Tunisia, 27% of the employees working in the sector are women, according to government records. The percentage of female students majoring in ICT rose from 28% in 1999 to 40% in 2004. The growth rate of the ICT sector in Tunisia has exceeded 17%.

The annual report of the Davos Forum for 2008-2009 ranked Tunisia 38th out of 135 in readiness for information technology development; the highest in Africa.