Here we welcome contributions on practical work and experiences about the use of ICTs for development by and for women in rural areas in particular.

Share your experience and cases! Please, contact Minke Valk, editor of the dossier.

Hambly Odame, Helen. Introduction: Gender and ICTs for development: setting the context. In: Gender and ICTs for development. A global sourcebook. KIT in association with Oxfam GB, 2005, p. 13-23

Li Guihuan. The effect of ICT on women's enterprise creation: a practical example from China. In: Gender and ICTs for development. A global sourcebook. KIT in association with Oxfam GB, 2005, p. 25-31

McKay, Blythe. Fishers and radios: a case study of Radio Ada in Ghana. In: Gender and ICTs for development. A global sourcebook. KIT in association with Oxfam GB, 2005, p. 45-50

Muturi, Nancy. Gender, ICTs and health in the Caribbean. In: Gender and ICTs for development. A global sourcebook. KIT in association with Oxfam GB, 2005, p. 61-74

Ray, Suryatirtha. Nabanna: gender, grassroots and ICTs (2005)

Terada, Minori. E-business piloting and readiness for rural women weavers in Bhutan: lessons learned. In: Gender and ICTs for development. A global sourcebook. KIT in association with Oxfam GB, 2005, p. 33-44

Wambui, Mercy. Development through radio: a case study from Sierra Leone. In: Gender and ICTs for development. A global sourcebook. KIT in association with Oxfam GB, 2005, p. 51-60

In 2006, KIT started a project called 'Mainstreaming of ICT'. The aim of the project, also known as ICT for Development or ICT4D, is to boost the role of ICT in development projects. A lot of expertise has already been built up in the field of information management ands this is being consolidated and more widely applied in 'Mainstreaming of ICT', to ensure that KIT projects in other fields also benefit. Source: Annual report 2006. Royal Tropical Institute.

Publications

• Gender and ICTs for development
• Information Management Partnerships for Development
• Introduction : Women’s information and networks

The KIT library queries at the bottom of the page offer quick access to the resources of KIT Library (articles, books, and other documents) on the use of ICTs as a tool for development by rural women, and men, to improve their living and working conditions.

You can also subscribe to one or more of KIT Library's thematic RSS feeds or e-mail alerts to keep informed of the latest Library's acquisitions.

Hereunder you will find recent publications that have not (yet) been included in the KIT library collection:

• Gender equality through ICT access and appropriation: taking a rights-based approach, Anita Gurumurthy. IT fotr Change Occasional Paper, 2008
• Empowering women in the knowledge society. 14d Magazine, July 2008
• Are women's ICT rights underfunded? by Lucía Carrasco and Fernanda Hopenhaym, with Cindy Clark, Association for Women’s Rights in Development, 2008
• Engendering the Knowledge Society: measuring women's participation, Sophia Huyer and Nancy Hafkin. Orbicom, 2007
• Community radio and gender. i4d, April 2007
• Shackleton, Sally-Jean. Rapid assessment of cell phones for development. Commissioned by UNICEF. 2007
• Kuga Thas, A.M., C.G. Ramilo & C. Cinco. Gender and ICT. Asia-Pacific Development Information Programme, 2007
• Dunn, H.S. & L. Dunn. Genderstanding mobile telephony: women, men and their use of the cellular phones in the Caribbean, 2007
• Okello, Dorothy. Empowering women through ICT: enhancing access to information by rural women, 2007

Websites

• Association for Progressive Communication, Women's Networking Support Programme (APC WNSP)
• Cisco Learning Institute, Gender Initiative
• World Bank, Engendering ICT Toolkit
• UNESCO, Gender and ICT
• International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Gender Issues
• genderIT.org
• Development Gateway, ICT and Gender
• Dot-Com-Alliance.org, ICT and Women
• Dgroups, ICT-based Enterprise for Women in Developing Countries
• ICTs for Rural Women
• Women's ICT-based Enterprise for Development
• Gender and ICT Awards
• International Taskforce on Women and ICTs (ITF)

KIT Library Queries

• Women/gender and ICTs
• Women/gender and the Internet
• Women/gender and communciation media, including radio, television, mobile phones, and video recordings

• In 2005, fewer than 4 out of every 100 Africans used the internet, compared with 1 out of every 2 people living in the G8 nations.
• The G8 is home to less than 15% of the world’s population, yet it is home to 45% of the world's internet users.
• At present (2004-2005) growth rates, nearly 25 % of people living in the developing world will be online by 2010.
• An estimated 30% of all villages worldwide still have no access to telephone services.
• 79% of Africa’s 27 million fixed phone lines are located in just 6 of its 54 nations Broadband penetration has reached 13% in high-income countries, it remains as low as 2% in middle-income countries and close to zero in low-income countries. An estimated 30 countries still rely on a single 10Mbps international internet connection (or less) to serve their entire population; in wealthy countries, consumers can now buy their own personal 10Mbps connection at very affordable prices.

Source: ITU website, October 2007

Weblinks

• International Telecom Union (ICT) Statistics

• Gender equality

  Gender equality entails the concept that all human beings, both men and women, are free to develop their personal abilities and make choices without the limitations set by stereotypes, rigid gender roles, or prejudices. Gender equality means that the different behaviours, aspirations and needs of women and men are considered, valued and favoured equally. It does not mean that women and men have to become the same, but that their rights, responsibilities and opportunities will not depend on whether they are born male or female. (ABC of women worker's rights and gender equality. Geneva: ILO, 2000) (Source: UN-INSTRAW)

• Gender mainstreaming
  Gender mainstreaming is the process of assessing the implications for women and men of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in all areas and at all levels. It is a strategy for making women's as well as men's concerns as well as experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres so that women and men benefit equally and inequality is not perpetuated. The utlimate goal is to achieve gender equality. (Source: Gender mainstreaming. Extract from Report of the Economic and Social Council for 1997 )

• 

  APC and UgaBYTES join forces to evaluate gender and ICTs

  27 augustus 2008
  Dafne Plou, an APC facilitator on GEM with telecentres, is in Uganda on a mission of evaluating how ICTs impact the community within gender lines. (Source: UgaBYTES website)

• Communication Rights for Women - Why the Purse feels empty?: Financing for women's equitable access to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT

  29 november 2008 - 29 november 2008
  UN Conference Room C, New York, USA

  Information and communication rights are essential pre-conditions for women to fully exercise their civil and political rights as citizens. Within the framework of women as citizens, this interactive discussion will explore a role of ICTs in facilitation of women's access to funding, as well as existing and emerging financing mechanisms for women's access to critical resources - information and communication technologies (ICTs).

  The session will begin with a digital story produced by Women'sNet, South Africa that illustrates how information and communication rights are essential pre-conditions for women to fully exercise their civil and political rights as citizens. This complex and rich story, made by the woman herself, speaks directly to the aspect of economic rights, health, dignity, access to information and communication rights, and technology. Digital Story thanks to Women'sNet: http://www.womensnet.org.za