Digital empowerment of women is a global challenge and valuable innovation is not the reserve of a particular sex, President Paul Kagame said yesterday.

The President was addressing delegates at the Gender Equality Mainstreaming - Technology (Gem-Tech) award in Busan, South Korea.

Kagame said the world must address the twin challenges of gender equality and technological development by recognising work by women in ICT that have had great impact on societies.

Drawing from the finalists at the Awards, organised by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), President Kagame noted that theirworks had turned them into role models for others to emulate.

"A closer look at the finalists tells us a few important things about the digital empowerment of women; they are drawn from almost every continent, representing countries at every income level,” Kagame said.

The President told the participants that technology was connecting women together and enabling them to advocate more effectively for equal rights and opportunities. "They are producing digital content showing the critical yet often hidden role that women have played in history. They are making girls more confident about science and technology, so that they have just as much chance to excel in the high-paying, knowledge-based jobs of the future.

"They are working to raise health outcomes and improve public service delivery more generally. They are making girls more confident about science and technology. They are giving rural women the opportunity to earn a living in the digital economy. They are breaking the culture of silence that surrounds violence against women.”

Equal beneficiaries

President Kagame emphasised the importance of understanding gender equality as essential to human dignity.

He said men are just as much the beneficiaries of their work as women are gender equality is an indivisible component of the wider struggle for human dignity.

President Kagame attended the ceremony alongside First Lady Jeannette Kagame. Also in attendance were Hamadoun Touré, the outgoing secretary-general of the ITU, and Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, executive director of UN Women, among other officials.

Co-organised with UN Women, the Gem-Tech Awards recognise the outstanding achievements of organisations and individuals in the area of gender equality and mainstreaming through ICT.

The launch of the Awards in June prompted over 360 nominations from over 70 countries around the world. The Awards were open to leading women and men, as well as organisations working in the field of ICT and gender.

The Gem-Tech Awards is an ITU annual achievement award co-organised with UN women and aimed at recognising outstanding performers and role models in gender equality and mainstreaming in the area of ICT.

Congratulating the seven winners out of the 37 finalists, Dr Toure said much still needs to be done to leverage the full power of ICTs to improve the lives of women and men.

"ITU estimates that some 200 million fewer women are online compared to men. Women are coming online later, and more slowly,” he said.

"Without remedial action, it is estimated that the Internet gender gap could grow to 350 million within four years. Equality in access to Broadband is not only an issue of right and wrong; it also makes commercial and economic sense.”