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28 January, 2001Information and communications technology (ICT) provides a possibility to improve women's lives, says a new ILO report.
GENEVA: The global employment picture remains "deeply flawed" for workers in many parts of the world. The ILO's newly published "World Employment Report 2001: Life at Work in the Information Economy" says that increasing numbers of workers are unable to find jobs in the digitalized global economy. The ICT revolution is also resulting in a widening global "digital divide."
According to the report, one-third of the world's workforce of three billion people are unemployed or underemployed. The global economy will have to maintain its current pace of expansion in order to generate 500 million new jobs. ICT provides an "enabling potential" to improve women's lives, but a "digital gender gap" is apparent, as women often finds themselves occupying lower-level ICT jobs, while men rise to higher paying positions.
Juan Somavía, director-general of the ILO, states that ICT can and will provide benefits for women. "It is one of my highest priorities to make sure this digital gender gap doesn't grow wider, that women are not left behind on the digital highway."
The ILO report is available under the associated link.
According to the report, one-third of the world's workforce of three billion people are unemployed or underemployed. The global economy will have to maintain its current pace of expansion in order to generate 500 million new jobs. ICT provides an "enabling potential" to improve women's lives, but a "digital gender gap" is apparent, as women often finds themselves occupying lower-level ICT jobs, while men rise to higher paying positions.
Juan Somavía, director-general of the ILO, states that ICT can and will provide benefits for women. "It is one of my highest priorities to make sure this digital gender gap doesn't grow wider, that women are not left behind on the digital highway."
The ILO report is available under the associated link.