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A24 TECHNOLOGY
Tuesday 12 March 2019
Head of U.N. Women: Technology revolution must benefit women
By EDITH M. LEDERER and middle-income coun-
Associated Press tries own mobile phones
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The and "it would be a historic
head of the U.N. women's mistake to fail to make de-
agency is calling for the liberate use of these tech-
revolution in technology nologies to advance gen-
to be used to benefit the der equality."
world's poor, and espe- Mlambo-Ngcuka said im-
cially women, who will not proving infrastructure to
achieve gender equality provide clean water means
without "the giant leap that that girls don't have to walk
21st century innovations miles to get water from a
can bring." river and boil it.
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka In her native South Africa,
said in an interview and a she said, "providing free
speech ahead of the Com- water, electricity and social
mission on the Status of protection for the poor has
Women's annual meeting meant more children go to
starting Monday that sani- school and stay in school,
tation, clean water, good and parents are able to
roads, affordable internet have a decent life and re-
service and use of mobile duce malnutrition."
phones to transfer money In Rwanda, Mlambo-Ngcu-
and pay bills are critical to In this Friday, March 8, 2019 photo provided by the United Nations, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, ka said, drones are being
third from right, executive director of UN Women, speaks at the United Nations Observance of
changing women's lives. International Women's Day at the United Nations headquarters. used to deliver medicine
"We have made progress Associated Press to rural areas, and in West
toward gender equality. Africa, drones are being
We have more women in executive director of UN that is why we are empha- that "the 21st century is used to oversee fields and
significant roles, but we're Women said. "Sometimes sizing the importance of in- about large ideas, scale sprinkle organic material
still leaving many, many we even lose the gains that novation and technology." and speed." to kill pests. And she said
more women behind," the we've already made. And Mlambo-Ngcuka stressed If technology and innova- blockchain technology —
tion aren't used to promote storing digital information
equality for women from about transactions in a
agriculture and education public database — can be
to finance and health, she used to deliver services to
said, the "Fourth Industrial displaced people.
Revolution" of rapid tech- But Mlambo-Ngcuka said,
nological change will hap- "The bad news is that even
pen "and the women will though there are solutions,
still be living in the previous they are not being taken
industrial revolution, which into account fully, even
also did not work for them where it reduces the cost."
very well." She said the biggest chal-
Mlambo-Ngcuka said, "The lenge in implementing the
good news is that for many U.N. goal of achieving gen-
of the problems we have der equality by 2030 is the
today there are solutions need to accelerate the
that we know about." pace and scale-up action.
She pointed to afford- Infrastructure is one of the
able internet service and barriers, which she said is
the use of "mobile money" why it is a key focus of this
through mobile phones year's two-week meeting
that is changing the lives of the Commission on the
of women in Kenya in the Status of Women.
same way that microcredit The debate on the commis-
— small loans — has en- sion's final document is still
abled hundreds of thou- underway, and Mlambo-
sands of women in devel- Ngcuka said among the
oping countries to start issues still being discussed
businesses. are the affordability of in-
In some countries, "mo- frastructure projects and
bile money" can be used how can they be financed,
to pay for the delivery of and the transfer of technol-
water or buying energy, ogy so that those in rela-
"so it's not a luxury to have tively agrarian countries
that kind of infrastructure," can leapfrog to the inter-
Mlambo-Ngcuka said. "It's net era.
a game-changer. It chang- "Some countries think wa-
es for better the GDP of ter is more important than
countries." broadband" high-speed in-
She noted that 80 percent ternet access, "but you ac-
of women in low-income tually need both," she said.
