Mobile phones are empowering women in various countries but gender inequalities in access continue: women in India are 25 per cent likely to own mobile phones, compared to men, according to data compiled by experts at the University of Oxford.
The data and a related study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, show that access to mobile phones is associated with lower gender inequalities, enhanced contraceptive use and lower maternal and child mortality.
Although these effects are global, the link between mobile phone access and the social development indicators is stronger in the developing world, says the study’s co-author Ridhi Kashyap, professor in the Department of Sociology.
She said: “Significant gender inequalities in mobile phone access still exist across the world, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. This study highlights the urgent need to address these inequalities to be able to realise the empowering potential of the technology”.
The study’s findings, Kashyap adds, are “highly relevant” in Indian context, where women often face greater barriers to accessing information important for their health, accessing economic and financial resources, as well as communication networks relevant for their well-being.
Besides the 25% gender gap in India, the data suggests that when women in the country have access to mobile phones, it is often also likely to be shared, and when women are able to use these devices is curtailed.
{{/usCountry}}Besides the 25% gender gap in India, the data suggests that when women in the country have access to mobile phones, it is often also likely to be shared, and when women are able to use these devices is curtailed.
{{/usCountry}}According to the study, women who own a mobile phone are better informed about sexual and reproductive health services and empowered to make independent decisions. The study looked at the relationship between mobile access and multiple indicators linked to global sustainable development in more than 200 countries between 1993 and 2017.
The study’s lead author Valentina Rotondi says: “Our findings highlight the importance of investing in cheaper and equitable access to mobile connectivity, enabling independent mobile ownership, and focusing on ICT skill development, especially among women”.
“These measures can forge a promising pathway for attaining sustainable development. Our study provides large-scale empirical evidence for the words pronounced in 2003 by Nobel Peace Laureate Muhammad Yunus…that the quickest way to get out of poverty right now is to have a mobile telephone.”