<s>
Gender	B-General_Concept
digital	I-General_Concept
divide	I-General_Concept
is	O
defined	O
as	O
gender	O
biases	O
coded	O
into	O
technology	O
products	O
,	O
technology	O
sector	O
and	O
digital	O
skills	O
education	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Women	O
are	O
less	O
likely	O
to	O
know	O
how	O
to	O
operate	O
a	O
smartphone	B-Application
,	O
navigate	O
the	O
internet	O
,	O
use	O
social	O
media	O
and	O
understand	O
how	O
to	O
safeguard	O
information	O
in	O
digital	O
mediums	O
(	O
abilities	O
that	O
underlie	O
life	O
and	O
work	O
tasks	O
and	O
are	O
relevant	O
to	O
people	O
of	O
all	O
ages	O
)	O
worldwide	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
is	O
a	O
gap	O
from	O
the	O
lowest	O
skill	O
proficiency	O
levels	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
using	O
apps	O
on	O
a	O
mobile	O
phone	O
,	O
to	O
the	O
most	O
advanced	O
skills	O
like	O
coding	O
computer	B-Application
software	I-Application
to	O
support	O
the	O
analysis	O
of	O
large	O
data	O
sets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Women	O
in	O
numerous	O
countries	O
are	O
25%	O
less	O
likely	O
than	O
men	O
to	O
know	O
how	O
to	O
leverage	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
for	O
basic	O
purposes	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
using	O
simple	O
arithmetic	O
formulas	O
in	O
a	O
spreadsheet	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
UNESCO	O
estimates	O
that	O
men	O
are	O
around	O
four	O
times	O
more	O
likely	O
than	O
women	O
to	O
have	O
advanced	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
skills	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
programme	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Across	O
G20	O
countries	O
7%	O
of	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
patents	O
are	O
generated	O
by	O
women	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
global	O
average	O
is	O
at	O
2%	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Recruiters	O
for	O
technology	O
companies	O
in	O
Silicon	O
Valley	O
estimate	O
that	O
the	O
applicant	O
pool	O
for	O
technical	O
jobs	O
in	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
(	O
AI	B-Application
)	O
and	O
data	O
science	O
is	O
often	O
less	O
than	O
1%	O
female	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Women	O
and	O
girls	O
may	O
struggle	O
to	O
access	O
public	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
facilities	O
due	O
to	O
unsafe	O
roads	O
,	O
limits	O
on	O
their	O
freedom	O
of	O
movement	O
,	O
or	O
because	O
the	O
facilities	O
themselves	O
are	O
considered	O
unsuitable	O
for	O
women	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fears	O
concerning	O
safety	O
and	O
harassment	O
(	O
both	O
online	O
and	O
offline	O
)	O
also	O
inhibit	O
many	O
women	O
and	O
girls	O
from	O
benefiting	O
from	O
or	O
even	O
wanting	O
to	O
use	O
ICTs	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
stereotype	B-Language
of	O
technology	O
as	O
a	O
male	O
domain	O
is	O
common	O
in	O
many	O
contexts	O
and	O
affect	O
girls’	O
confidence	O
in	O
their	O
digital	O
skills	O
from	O
a	O
young	O
age	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
OECD	O
countries	O
,	O
0.5	O
%	O
of	O
girls	O
aspire	O
towards	O
ICT-related	O
careers	O
at	O
age	O
15	O
,	O
versus	O
5%	O
of	O
boys	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Managers	O
of	O
early	O
technology	O
firms	O
allowed	O
women	O
well-suited	O
for	O
programming	O
because	O
of	O
stereotypes	B-Language
characterizing	O
them	O
as	O
meticulous	O
and	O
good	O
at	O
following	O
step-by-step	O
directions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
the	O
declining	O
price	O
of	O
connectivity	O
and	O
hardware	O
,	O
skills	O
deficits	O
have	O
exceeded	O
barriers	O
of	O
access	O
as	O
the	O
primary	O
contributor	O
to	O
the	O
gender	B-General_Concept
digital	I-General_Concept
divide	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
cost	O
of	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
access	O
remains	O
an	O
issue	O
and	O
is	O
surpassed	O
by	O
educational	O
gaps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
the	O
gender	O
gap	O
in	O
internet	O
penetration	O
is	O
around	O
17%	O
in	O
the	O
Arab	O
States	O
and	O
the	O
Asia	O
and	O
Pacific	O
region	O
,	O
whereas	O
the	O
gender	O
gap	O
in	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
skills	O
is	O
as	O
high	O
as	O
25%	O
in	O
some	O
Asian	O
and	O
Middle	O
Eastern	O
countries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
women	O
are	O
less	O
likely	O
to	O
use	O
digital	O
services	O
or	O
mobile	B-Application
Internet	I-Application
and	O
tend	O
to	O
use	O
different	O
mobile	O
services	O
than	O
men	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Women	O
are	O
also	O
more	O
likely	O
to	O
report	O
that	O
they	O
do	O
not	O
see	O
a	O
reason	O
to	O
access	O
and	O
use	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Interest	O
and	O
perception	O
of	O
need	O
are	O
related	O
to	O
skills	O
,	O
as	O
people	O
who	O
have	O
little	O
experience	O
with	O
or	O
understanding	O
of	O
ICTs	B-General_Concept
tend	O
to	O
underestimate	O
their	O
benefits	O
and	O
utility	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Interventions	O
should	O
not	O
be	O
limited	O
to	O
formal	O
education	O
settings	O
,	O
they	O
should	O
reflect	O
a	O
multifaceted	O
approach	O
,	O
enabling	O
women	O
and	O
girls	O
to	O
acquire	O
skills	O
in	O
a	O
variety	O
of	O
formal	O
and	O
informal	O
contexts	O
(	O
at	O
home	O
,	O
in	O
school	O
,	O
in	O
their	O
communities	O
and	O
in	O
the	O
workplace	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Embedding	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
in	O
formal	O
education	O
;	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
the	O
Food	O
and	O
Agriculture	O
Organization	O
(	O
FAO	O
)	O
,	O
there	O
are	O
seven	O
success	O
factors	O
to	O
empowering	O
rural	O
women	O
through	O
ICTs	B-General_Concept
:	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
efforts	O
can	O
help	O
create	O
more	O
inclusive	O
workplaces	B-Application
that	O
respect	O
diversity	O
and	O
promote	O
creativity	O
by	O
boosting	O
the	O
presence	O
of	O
women	O
in	O
the	O
technology	O
industry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
research	O
,	O
mentoring	O
programs	O
can	O
help	O
increase	O
women	O
's	O
confidence	O
and	O
feeling	O
of	O
connection	O
in	O
the	O
workplace	B-Application
,	O
which	O
can	O
improve	O
job	O
happiness	O
and	O
professional	O
growth	O
opportunities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Men	O
continue	O
to	O
dominate	O
the	O
technology	O
space	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
disparity	O
serves	O
to	O
perpetuate	O
gender	O
inequalities	O
,	O
as	O
unrecognized	O
bias	O
is	O
replicated	O
and	O
built	O
into	O
algorithms	O
and	O
artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
(	O
AI	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Learning	O
and	O
confidence	O
gaps	O
that	O
arise	O
as	O
early	O
as	O
primary	O
school	O
amplify	O
as	O
girls	O
move	O
through	O
education	O
,	O
therefore	O
by	O
the	O
time	O
they	O
reach	O
higher	O
education	O
only	O
a	O
fraction	O
pursue	O
advanced-level	O
studies	O
in	O
computer	B-General_Concept
science	I-General_Concept
and	O
related	O
information	B-General_Concept
and	I-General_Concept
communication	I-General_Concept
technology	I-General_Concept
(	O
ICT	B-General_Concept
)	O
fields	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
instance	O
AI	B-Application
,	O
which	O
is	O
a	O
branch	O
of	O
the	O
technology	O
sector	O
that	O
wields	O
influence	O
over	O
people	O
's	O
lives	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Today	O
,	O
AI	B-Application
curates	O
information	O
shown	O
by	O
internet	B-Application
search	I-Application
engines	I-Application
,	O
determines	O
medical	O
treatments	O
,	O
makes	O
loan	O
decisions	O
,	O
ranks	O
job	O
applications	O
,	O
translates	O
languages	O
,	O
places	O
ads	O
,	O
recommends	O
prison	O
sentences	O
,	O
influences	O
parole	O
decisions	O
,	O
calibrates	O
lobbying	O
and	O
campaigning	O
efforts	O
,	O
intuits	O
tastes	O
and	O
preferences	O
,	O
and	O
decides	O
who	O
qualifies	O
for	O
insurance	O
,	O
among	O
other	O
tasks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Despite	O
the	O
growing	O
influence	O
of	O
this	O
technology	O
,	O
women	O
make	O
up	O
just	O
12%	O
of	O
AI	B-Application
researchers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Digital	O
assistants	O
can	O
include	O
:	O
voice	O
assistants	O
,	O
chatbots	B-Application
,	O
and	O
virtual	O
agents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Between	O
2008	O
and	O
2018	O
,	O
the	O
frequency	O
of	O
voice-based	O
internet	B-Application
search	I-Application
queries	O
increased	O
35	O
times	O
and	O
account	O
for	O
close	O
to	O
one	O
fifth	O
of	O
mobile	B-Application
internet	I-Application
searches	O
(	O
a	O
figure	O
that	O
is	O
projected	O
to	O
increase	O
to	O
50%	O
by	O
2020	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Amazon	B-Application
has	O
Alexa	O
(	O
named	O
for	O
the	O
ancient	O
library	O
in	O
Alexandria	O
)	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
has	O
Cortana	O
(	O
named	O
for	O
a	O
synthetic	O
intelligence	O
in	O
the	O
video	O
game	O
Halo	O
that	O
projects	O
itself	O
as	O
a	O
sensuous	O
unclothed	O
woman	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
Apple	O
has	O
Siri	O
(	O
coined	O
by	O
the	O
Norwegian	O
co-creator	O
of	O
the	O
iPhone	O
4S	O
and	O
meaning	O
‘	O
beautiful	O
woman	O
who	O
leads	O
you	O
to	O
victory’	O
in	O
Norse	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
voice	O
assistant	O
is	O
simply	O
Google	B-Application
Assistant	O
and	O
sometimes	O
referred	O
to	O
as	O
Google	B-Application
Home	O
,	O
its	O
voice	O
is	O
female	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Companies	O
like	O
Amazon	B-Application
and	O
Apple	O
have	O
cited	O
academic	O
work	O
demonstrating	O
that	O
people	O
prefer	O
a	O
female	O
voice	O
to	O
a	O
male	O
voice	O
,	O
justifying	O
the	O
decision	O
to	O
make	O
voice	O
assistants	O
female	O
.	O
</s>
