Girls’ access to technology to achieve UN-SDG gender equality
By Tada JUTHA, Maiduguri
The Country Director of Mercy Corps, Ndubisi Anyanwu has declared that girls are less likely than boys to gain access or use technologies and innovations in Nigeria.
According to him, without providing an enabling environment for females, which comprised 50% of the population , to exercise their fundamental rights for peace and sustainable development cannot be achieved.
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Anyanwu raised the alarm on Wednesday in a statement in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital to mark 2021 International Day of the Girl Child in collaboration with WeGirls Development Foundation.
He said the Corps strives to address and mitigate gender dynamics that exacerbate conflict by engaging the people to alleviate poverty and youths’ restiveness.
He noted that research has also indicated that there is a gender gap for internet users in the less developed countries (LDCs) in 2019 by 43%.
“The weaponization of social media is shifting peace and conflicts in the world’s fragile states,” he warned.
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Continuing, he declared that; “It is critical to ‘equip and empower’ girls to leverage powerful technology tools to counter negative campaigns including hate speech and misinformation.” Noting that the empowerment of girls can accelerate the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) five for gender equality.
He said its a call to action for strategic actions; to bridge the digital gender divide and ensure inclusive digital transformation.
