The whole world celebrates, for the 46e times, International Women’s Rights Day, March 8, 2023, under the theme: ” For an inclusive digital world: innovation and technologies for gender equality “. On the occasion, the Minister of Social Action, Women’s Protection and Literacy, Mrs. Adjovi Lolonyo Apédoh-Anakoma, delivered a message in which she saluted the memory of pioneering women, whose struggle led to the consecration of this day. She invites Togolese women to make additional efforts, in order to strengthen their capacities in the use of digital technology, to better seize the enormous opportunities that digital technology offers today.
In a message delivered on Monday, March 6, 2023, to her office, Minister Adjovi Lolonyo Apédoh-Anakoma in charge of Women’s Protection noted that the international community is celebrating, on March 8, women’s rights in all areas. of life. She seizes this opportunity to pay tribute to the memory of the women pioneers of the struggle, which led to the consecration of this day, without forgetting the Togolese women who have distinguished themselves over the years by their dedication and their sense of responsibility, for the noble cause of promoting women’s rights and gender equality.
In his opinion, the celebration this year offers a new opportunity to evaluate efforts in the promotion of women’s rights in all sectors of activity and to define new perspectives, to improve the indicators. Thus, in its role of guiding reflections on this theme, UN-Women invites States, this year, to focus their attention on the digital world, by choosing as theme:“For an inclusive digital world: innovation and technologies for gender equality”, she pointed out . From his point of view, this theme is very close to that of the 67e session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women entitled: “Innovation and technological change, education in the digital age for the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls”. Two almost similar themes, to furnish the reflections of two major events of the year 2023 in favor of women, and which ” are proof of the growing interest of the international community in the urgent need to make our planet a more inclusive and integrated digital world “Explained Minister Apédoh-Anakoma.
Gender-sensitive technological innovations should be encouraged
For the Minister in charge of the Promotion of Women, “ lhe promotion of gender equality translates into the adoption of integrated approaches and the choice of innovative actions in favor of women and other marginalized groups in several areas. The choice by UN-Women of this theme, linked to technological innovations, is motivated by the search for innovative solutions that meet the needs of equity and gender equality. In his 2022 “Gender Equality Spotlight” report, UN Women mentions that “the exclusion of women from the digital world has reduced the gross domestic product of low- and middle-income countries by US$1 trillion over the past decade”, will reach US$1.5 trillion by 2025, if nothing is done”, she indicated.
And to reverse this trend, it will be necessary to encourage gender-sensitive technological innovations and adopt effective strategies against online violence, including “ a study of 51 countries around the world found that 38% of women say they have personally been victimized ».
« On another level, while the digitization of entrepreneurship is gaining ground in many countries, a prospective study by “Pôle Emploi” of the national coalition for youth employment in Togo, indicates that in 2030, 85 % of jobs will be almost entirely digital. Hence, the need to equip women in the same way as men with digital technologies, so that they do not miss any opportunity in this future of challenges. ”, emphasized Ms. Anakoma.
A theme that fits perfectly into Togo’s priorities »
In the opinion of Minister Apédoh-Anakoma, the international theme chosen for the celebration of March 8, 2023, ” fits perfectly into Togo’s priorities, especially since one of the objectives of the 2020-2025 government roadmap is to make Togo a reference in terms of digital. This ambition of the Togolese Government, under the very high impetus of the President of the Republic, Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé, has the merit of being welcomed because of its anticipatory nature, because according to data published by the OECD in 2022, only 50% of women use the Internet in some European countries, compared to 68% of men. The rate of women who use the internet would be lower for our country, given the low level of digitalization of the activities of the populations, in general and those of women, in particular, despite the efforts of the Government. Indeed, in its support role, the Government, through several initiatives, is working tirelessly to give women new and adapted skills, with a view to promoting their right to digital technology and making them more competitive with regard to the requirements of the ‘Digital Economy “, she noted. From his point of view, with the launch of the national public services portal, “ the digitization of essential services is effective in our country: applications for passports, building permits, connection to electricity, residence cards, visas, criminal records, duplicate nationalities, to name but a few , are now done online“. The Minister maintains that with the new opportunities offered by digital technology, particularly in terms of international trade, the government encourages the players involved to intensify inclusive digital education and invites women to make additional efforts, with a view to strengthen their capacities in the use of digital, to better seize opportunities, because digital modulates the human civilization of the 21e century. In this regard, she urges women to indulge in it, so as not to miss this train. Because ” today, with the expansion of the use of smartphones, androids, digital applications, e-commerce and other technologies giving wide access to the web, the government has created the right conditions for easy access and use digital by the entire population, in general, and by women, in particular” , informed the minister. She concluded her message, inviting her “dear sisters, to seize all these opportunities to strengthen» their empowerment and development.
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