Mobile for Development Blog

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Pick up the phone! Accelerating digital adoption through women’s Self-Help Groups in India

In 2021, BBC Media Action conducted a landscaping study of digital literacy interventions in India to identify which approaches showed the most promise, which hadn’t worked and why, and gaps in evidence. Among the findings, the study identified that most digital ...

The GSMA leads digital gender inclusion discussions at 67th Session of United Nations Commission on the Status of Women

In March, the GSMA joined the 67th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). CSW is the UN’s largest annual gathering where gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls are discussed by governments, the private sector, civil society ...

Our new data shows further slowdown in digital inclusion for women

#EmbraceEquity: The mobile gender gap Last year on International Women’s Day we shared that, for the first time, progress in reducing the gender gap in mobile internet across low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) had stalled and, in some countries, even reversed. This was ...

Rural women have so much to gain from mobile, but are being left behind

This blog is a deep dive into mobile access and use among rural women. It draws on data from the GSMA’s Consumer Survey 2021, a nationally representative survey conducted in ten low- and middle-income countries. Note that ‘rural’ is defined in accordance with census data and ...

The mobile gender gap in South Asia is now widening

Mobile internet can be a life-enhancing tool that makes people feel more autonomous, safe and connected, especially women. Yet, women in South Asia are substantially less likely than men to access mobile internet. Across low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), South Asia ...

Empowering female micro-entrepreneurs through mobile: GSMA Connected Women’s new project

There are over four hundred million micro businesses in emerging markets, forming the backbone of societies and economies. An incredible opportunity exists to increase women’s participation. Currently, only 38% of global MSMEs are female-owned, and they are more likely to be ...

Findings from Findex: Mobile money is driving financial inclusion for women, but more work needs to be done

This blog explores the changing mobile money gender gap across low- and middle-income countries, based on GSMA’s analysis of the latest 2021 Findex data and previous 2017 data Mobile money continues to be a driving force, transforming the financial inclusion landscape ...

Improving digital skills among rural women: An interview with Telenor Pakistan

In today’s world, we know that mobile internet can bring invaluable benefits to millions of people worldwide. However, women do not equally partake in this opportunity. Pakistan has one of the largest mobile gender gaps in the world – women are 38% less likely ...

The Mobile Gender Gap Report 2022

Progress in closing the gender gap in mobile internet use has stalled More than 3.2 billion people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) now access the internet on a mobile phone. Mobile is the primary way men and women access the internet in LMICs, accounting for 85% ...

Mobile internet use, well-being and gender: Understanding the links

More than half the world’s population is now using mobile internet, and studies have linked mobile broadband coverage with improved household income. Yet there is almost no research on how mobile internet use impacts the well-being of individual men and women in low- and ...

Exploring women’s and entrepreneurs’ use of mobile money in Ghana

This blog shares some key findings from the GSMA’s report “Exploring women’s use of mobile money in Ghana: The user journey, entrepreneurs and the impact of COVID-19”. It draws on recent GSMA qualitative and nationally representative quantitative field research in Ghana in ...

Tracking the mobile money industry 10 years on: Addressing the mobile money gender gap

This blog shares some key findings from the “Addressing the mobile money gender gap” Chapter on page 60 of the GSMA’s State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money 2022. It draws on recent GSMA nationally representative field research in a number of low- and ...

Improving Women’s Digital Safety with Mobile Tokenisation

In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), like Ghana, the wide-ranging benefits of mobile technology are evident in the everyday life of underserved communities. Mobile enables access to voice and communication services, and provides a preferred, and often first, entry to ...

Our latest data highlights the urgency to address the mobile gender gap two years into the COVID-19 pandemic

Over the last two years, the COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the importance of access to mobile and mobile internet. Women in particular have been disproportionately negatively impacted by the pandemic and mobile has provided them with a means to mitigate many of the ...

Protecting women’s identities through mobile tokenisation

Mobile technology is being used to change lives and bring new solutions and services to underserved communities. According to the GSMA’s Mobile Gender Gap Report 2021, 143 million fewer women than men own a mobile across low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and women ...

Bank Asia’s top agent and the lessons from her success

Alsin is a young mother and wife, and the top performing agent among Bank Asia’s over 4,800 active agents (of which only about 10% are female). In recent months, her average monthly commission has grown to over 40 times the average commission of all other active agents. In ...

COVID-19 is diversifying mobile internet use for women in Bangladesh, but most are still excluded

Connected Women has conducted several in-country research studies in Bangladesh over the past year. This blog captures some of the emerging findings. It is 7pm in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Tonema is home from work, exhausted from the countless tuk-tuk rides she has taken since this ...

The Mobile Gender Gap Report 2021

In a year of unprecedented stress, loss and continuous uncertainty from the COVID-19 pandemic, mobile phones provided a lifeline for women to stay afloat. Across low- and middle-income countries, 3 billion people now access the internet on a mobile phone[1], and for most ...

GSMA Makes Bold Commitments at the Generation Equality Forum in Paris

The GSMA has made bold commitments on behalf of the mobile industry to tackle the mobile gender gap and promote digital inclusion for women and girls at the Generation Equality Forum in Paris. The forum was convened by UN Women and co-hosted by the governments of Mexico and ...

Top 10 recommendations for reaching women with mobile

Relevant for mobile operators, policymakers, the development community and other stakeholders who are seeking to reach women with mobile products and services in low- and middle-income countries. How can mobile operators reach women with mobile across low- and middle-income ...

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