It is hard to conceive of a world without internet, but in spite of the fact that this is the case there are still billions of people all around the world who don’t have access to it. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) projects that there are still 2.7 billion people who don’t have a reliable internet connection, and it turns out that women are a lot more affected by this with all things having been considered and taken into account.
According to the findings that this organization put out, about 31% of men don’t have internet access. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that this number is much higher for women, hovering at around the 37% mark. That means that there are 259 million more women than men who are unable to use the internet, and that might be making the gender gap larger than might have been the case otherwise.
The difference is much starker in developing countries. In Africa, for example, just 34% of women have internet access compared to 45% of men that have it. The gap is even larger in the Arab world, with a ten point difference being noted between the 75% of men who have a reliable internet connection and just 65% of women who can say the same.
On average, 21% of women are able to use the internet in low income countries. This seems to suggest that certain higher income countries in Africa might be skewing the numbers, and there might be whole areas where women are restricted from the wealth of information that only the internet can provide.
Women make up half of the global population, yet they are 18% more likely to not have internet access. That is dangerous because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up widening the already broad gender gap and making it increasingly difficult for women to achieve an equal and level playing field that can help them get on par with the men they are competing with.
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According to the findings that this organization put out, about 31% of men don’t have internet access. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that this number is much higher for women, hovering at around the 37% mark. That means that there are 259 million more women than men who are unable to use the internet, and that might be making the gender gap larger than might have been the case otherwise.
The difference is much starker in developing countries. In Africa, for example, just 34% of women have internet access compared to 45% of men that have it. The gap is even larger in the Arab world, with a ten point difference being noted between the 75% of men who have a reliable internet connection and just 65% of women who can say the same.
On average, 21% of women are able to use the internet in low income countries. This seems to suggest that certain higher income countries in Africa might be skewing the numbers, and there might be whole areas where women are restricted from the wealth of information that only the internet can provide.
Women make up half of the global population, yet they are 18% more likely to not have internet access. That is dangerous because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up widening the already broad gender gap and making it increasingly difficult for women to achieve an equal and level playing field that can help them get on par with the men they are competing with.
Read next: Research highlights the most commonly shared life events across TikTok and Instagram
