Digital inclusion is essential to equitable development. Lack of access to affordable and reliable internet connections and devices is a critical barrier to development for nearly three billion people around the world, with women and girls, people with disabilities and other people who experience discrimination and exclusion most impacted.
Once online, excluded people often struggle with a lack of digital literacy and skills, with negative impacts on their ability to study and earn a living. Simultaneously, online violence is disproportionately targeted at women, girls, and gender and sexual minorities, with governments often ill-equipped to address this.
Digital Inclusion aims to reduce and ultimately eliminate the barriers to access to digital products and services which excluded people and groups typically experience. This may be increasing women’s digital literacy so they can use mobile devices to access information, work and government services. It also includes making the internet a safer place for women, girls and sexual and gender minorities by addressing technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Another aspect of digital inclusion is the use of technology to make information, products and services more accessible to people with disabilities, such as through the use of assistive technology.
SDDirect has varied and in-depth experience of increasing the digital inclusion of women, girls and other excluded groups, as well as of reducing online harms.
Our staff has expertise in the following thematic areas:
The first installment of the digital blog series is out now! Read "How digital technology can promote women’s economic empowerment in Pacific Island countries" by Rebekah Martin now.
If you would like to hear more about our work on Digital Inclusion, please reach out to Kavita Kalsi, Head of Digital Portfolio, kavita.kalsi@sddirect.org.uk.
Kavita Kalsi is a Senior Technical Specialist at SDDirect.
The Digital Access Programme (DAP) is a four year, £59m programme jointly funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMA) to catalyse more inclusive, affordable, safe and secure digital access for excluded and underserved communities in Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Brazil an
Response to Helpdesk query regarding current best practice on mobile agriculture programme (i.e. mobile-based interventions targeted at smallholder farmers). This was to include smallholder farmers with dsability, and a discussion of ways to empower them, and address the key barriers that they face.
Produced in response to a query which requested more knowledge and understanding on how gender and inclusion (G&I) and women's economic empowerment (WEE) are being integrated into digital/tech programming at the Prosperity Fund (PF), and to consider opportunities to increase the level of ambition on G&I/WEE.
This annotated bibliography was produced in response to a VAWG Helpdesk query regarding evidence on the digital harassment of women leaders (MPs, civic activists, etc.) - including the scale of the issue, impact on inidivudal and collective levels, and effectiveness of interventions on this issue.
This guidance note aims to build knowledge and understanding on technology's use and impact on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) programming in humanitarian settings. It identifies good practices, lessons and challenges in using technology within the GBV research community.
SDDirect provide technical assistance to the European Investment Bank (EIB) supporting them realise their aspirations on gender equality and women’s economic empowerment through sector operations in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Working closely with the Environment, Climate and Social Office (ESCO), SDDirect produced seven sector-specific, gender resource packs in:
This third learning brief looks at some of the wider implications of technology facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV), and offers recommendations for key stakeholders, including humanitarian agencies, donors and online industries, on priority actions to take to prevent and respond to TFGBV.
