TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Closing the digital gender divide: What’s next for the digital economy?
Women experience systemic gaps, while discriminatory practices prevent women-led MSMEs from social and economic participation and from financial and digital inclusion.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Minding my own business: Women package crackers made of betel leaf as part of their small business in Neglasari subdistrict, Tangerang, Banten, on May 16, 2022. (Antara/Fauzan)
“Digital transformation” has become today’s buzzword and focus for most countries – and Indonesia is no exception. Although the digital revolution promises to improve social and economic outcomes for women, it also comes with the risk of perpetuating patterns of gender inequality.
The Indonesia Digital Literacy Index is at 3.49 or close to a moderate level. However, when we assessed a sample of 10,000 respondents, 55 percent of male respondents had a higher digital score above the national average. In contrast, the proportion of female respondents was at 45 percent.
The digital journey for women is not seamless. Several barriers keep women and girls offline, such as expensive mobile devices and data packages, lower digital skills and restrictive social norms.
A report from the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) in 32 lower to middle income countries states that countries have missed out on US$1 trillion in gross domestic products due to women’s exclusion from the digital world. Thus, closing the digital gender gap is not just a moral cause, it is a crucial opportunity for women to participate in the economy.
In Indonesia, women own 61 percent of MSMEs. Yet only 17 percent of them are present on the e-commerce platforms. The effects of the pandemic urged MSMEs to access markets using digital technology to help the nation’s economy revive and grow. MSMEs must therefore seek to integrate with the digital ecosystem to survive and thrive. However, connecting MSMEs to the digital ecosystem is notoriously complex. For women, the challenges intensify.
Women experience systemic gaps, while discriminatory practices prevent women-led MSMEs from social and economic participation and from financial and digital inclusion. Women cannot safely own or access essential digital services, skills or resources as a fundamental right, which discourages women-led MSMEs from competing digitally in the marketplace. Additionally, they struggle to enter the digital ecosystem due to factors, such as a lack of gender responsive digital infrastructure, inadequate market access and limited control and ownership of productive digital skills and assets.
What key actions can support the effort to close the digital gender gap in Indonesia?
