Column: On The Gender Barrier

As I write this piece, I am besieged with mixed
feelings-joy and pride, because it recognizes me as a woman who has
established her presence in a male dominated area; anguish at this continued
demarcation and distinction in a world which professes to give equal
opportunities to all and a nagging concern, that despite all the millions of
working women across the world today, we still have very few women icons to
showcase!

Gender disparity is a rampant global phenomena and there
have been innumerable instances, especially in the old economy businesses, when
deserving and competent female candidates have been sidelined or superseded by
less capable male colleagues.

Personally, I can only recall one instance of gender
discrimination in my working career to date, when several years ago two male
colleagues left the organization I was working with, rather than report to a
woman boss-me! Fortunately for me, all my bosses have been encouraging and
supportive individuals who gave me equal opportunities to prove myself and gave
me due recognition for my efforts. Notwithstanding that, the climb up has been
through dint of sheer hard work, complete dedication and commitment to the task
at hand, a strong personal conviction that I could do it, a supportive family
eco system and, of course, a lot of luck! Also perhaps the sector in which I
chose to make my career helped, because I do believe that the new age businesses
are more open minded and less prejudiced by the “typical” ways of conducting
business.

Over the years, given the changing face of business and the
greater integration of Information Technology at the workplace, an attitudinal
change has begun to manifest itself which is leading to a redefinition of gender
roles. Against the backdrop of globalization, IT has become a potent force in
transforming social, economic and political life across the globe. It would be
myopic, however, to see the IT revolution as the harbinger of an era of total
equality, and progressive and sustainable growth. Gender concerns in the
diffusion of IT have assumed global significance, as the celebrated potential of
IT is remote from the realities of many.

Nancy Hafkin and Nancy Taggart, in their book titled
'Gender, Information Technology, and Developing Countries: An Analytic
Study' remark, “Most women within developing countries are in the deepest
part of the divide-further removed from the information age than the men whose
poverty they share. If access to and use of these technologies is directly
linked to social and economic development, then it is imperative to ensure that
women in developing countries understand the significance of these technologies
and use them. If not, they will become further marginalized from the mainstream
of their countries and of the world.” That women Internet users in developing
countries are not representative of women in the country as a whole, but are
restricted to part of a small, urban educated elite, is illustrative of the
layered character of the digital divide.

So what prevents women from reaping the benefits of the IT
revolution in our country? Several gender-specific antecedents impede women's
access of IT: apart from literacy and education, social and cultural norms that
constrain women's mobility and access to resources are huge obstacles. Science
and technology education is necessary for women to work in IT at the level of
computer programmers, engineers, systems analysts, and designers. Women's low
enrolment in science impedes this globally.

It is also often argued that the concern for gender and ICT
in developing countries is not a compelling one, and should be secondary to
meeting basic needs first. This contention, however, doesn't quite hold, as it
is not an either/or situation, as both need to be addressed simultaneously.
Organizations like UNDP believe that unless gender issues are fully integrated
into policy analyses and program design, women and men will not benefit equally
from ICTs and their application. Like many other regions of the world, India too
is seeing rapid developments in the ICT domain that are reshaping all spheres of
societal life. However, information and knowledge regarding the gender
dimensions of these processes is neither cohesive nor organized and a strong
political will is required to drive change in this area.

The modern workplace, though equipped with all the benefits
which accrue with IT, needs to be made equally gender sensitive. Some steps in
the right direction have been the deployment of technology which allows many
workers to participate through flexible working schemes. This is particularly
beneficial for mothers, who remotely access their firm's network from home and
are thus able to care for their families whilst they work. Not only will this
result in higher self esteem amongst women themselves but I believe, it will
also engender an enduring mindset change amongst male members in their families.

Profitable opportunities also exist for women's
small-scale enterprises in business-to-business and business-to-government
segments, which women need to be encouraged to explore, by making viable
concessions and attractive offers available to them. Extension of
infrastructure, particularly wireless and satellite communications, to rural
areas and semi-urban areas is equally vital to enable women's access to
information technology.

In conclusion, I believe that bridging the digital divide,
especially with regard to women is perhaps one of the outstanding challenges of
globalization today. A challenge that we need to meet head on, as IT can play a
definitive role in countering gender disparity. The evidence is all around
us-in the growing number of women entering IT companies now from all strata of
society and working diligently to realize their individual dreams and
aspirations.

I would thus strongly urge the government and the private
sector to focus their energies in this direction, as IT access will not only go
a long way towards significant political, economic and social gains for women at
the workplace and outside, but also empower and enable them to walk tall,
confident and equal to their male counterparts.