ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT

IT can assist women's economic activities in farming, rural development, trade, business, and industry in a variety of ways. For instance, female farmers could greatly increase productivity with access to information on improved agricultural inputs, weather, markets, new production techniques, and farming technologies. Traders and other entrepreneurs also could benefit from marketing information and the opportunity to disseminate information about their businesses.

While business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce has generated a great deal of excitement, entry into the industry can be difficult. Women's handicrafts can find niche markets, but marketing and management skills are needed, and supply and delivery problems must be addressed. Some successful developing country e-businesses have targeted their Diaspora markets, for example, and taken advantage of access to local delivery options. Profitable opportunities also exist for women's small- scale enterprises in business-to-government (B2G) and business-to-business (B2B) markets, where even small firms can participate in international ventures.

IT-enabled communications businesses offer great potential for women entrepreneurs, following the model of Grameen Phone in Bangladesh, téléboutiques (storefronts where telephone, fax, email, and sometimes Internet services are available to the public) in Senegal and Morocco, and phone shops in Ghana. Given high demand and low capital and skill requirements, these businesses are within the reach of many women in developing countries where an enabling environment exists. Availability of credit, particularly in the form of micro-credit and credit for small and medium enterprises, is a necessity for women to enter such businesses.

For employment in core sector IT jobs, women in developing countries need to acquire the skills necessary to move into more technical, cognitively oriented, and higher-paying jobs. Degrees in science and technology are the entry tickets to the higher ends of using and producing IT, but women can master many aspects of computer use and maintenance with significantly less training, much of which is available outside the formal education system.

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