The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
STORYLINE
Only 30 per cent of women globally have access to the Internet, says ITU
Women still account for a disproportionate and growing share of the global offline population – with only 30 per cent having access to the internet in the least developed countries. This according to the first female Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Doreen Bogdan-Martin, who spoke to reporters in Geneva on the eve of International Women’s Day (8 March).
“I've seen women who can't afford a smartphone, women in countries where entry level handsets can exceed 70 per cent of average household monthly incomes,” said Ms. Bogdan- Martin during a briefing at the United Nations in Geneva on ITU’s global priorities for 2024 - which include narrowing this gender gap in internet access.
“Women still account for a disproportionate and growing share of the global offline population, outnumbering men by some 20 per cent in least developed countries. Only 30 per cent of women have access to the Internet,” she said.
For 2024, ITU Member States have set two clear strategic goals for the Union going forward: universal connectivity and sustainable digital transformation.
After 14 months at the helm of ITU, Ms. Bogdan-Martin said that she had "experienced in my time as ITU Secretary-General two worlds, … one in high income countries where almost 90 per cent of the population is covered by a 5G network and a much bigger and also poorer world where service is nearly absent and when available, it's not affordable.”
Turning to the fight against climate change, ITU’s Secretary-General stressed that Artificial Intelligence (AI) can mitigate 10 per cent of greenhouse gas emission by 2030. Digital solutions such as AI can help to boost progress on climate change, education and poverty, she said.
“There are incredible opportunities that we can leverage from AI in general, from generative AI,” she said. “But there are risks and we need to be able to manage and mitigate the risks. It's a challenge to find how to balance between regulating and stifling innovation. And that's the current debate that we're seeing, not just here in Geneva, but I think globally.”
According to ITU, 2.6 billion people today are not connected, and they have never been connected to the Internet. For Ms. Bogdan-Martin “this is really one of the biggest challenges of our generation.”
“My biggest fear and what keeps me up at night is the 2.6 billion people that are not connected and I say that because if you're not part of the digital world, then you're not part of the AI world. And I do think we have to close that gap and in parallel find ways to make AI safer.”
-ends-
STORY: ITU
TRT: 2:43”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 7 March 2024 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
- Exterior medium shot: UN flag alley
- Wide shot: speakers at the press conference
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): “I've seen women who can't afford a smartphone, women in countries where entry level handsets can exceed 70 per cent, 70 pe cent of average household monthly incomes.”
- Wide shot: press room with journalists
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): “Women still account for a disproportionate and growing share of the global offline population, outnumbering men by some 20 per cent. In the least developed countries only 30% of women have access to the Internet.”
- Wide shot: podium with speaker and photographer
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): “I've experienced in my time as ITU Secretary-General two worlds: I would say one in high income countries where almost 90 per cent of the population is covered by a 5G network and a much bigger and also poorer world where service is nearly absent and when available, it's not affordable.”
- Medium shot: speaker at the podium, filmed from behind
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): “There are incredible opportunities that we can leverage from AI in general, from generative AI. But there are risks and we need to be able to manage and mitigate the risks. It's a challenge to find how to balance between regulating and stifling innovation. And that's the current debate that we're seeing, not just here in Geneva, but I think globally.”
- Medium shot: speaker at the podium with photographer
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): “My biggest fear and what keeps me up at night is the 2.6 billion people that are not connected and I say that because if you're not part of the digital world, then you're not part of the AI world. And I do think we have to close that gap and in parallel find ways to make AI safer.”
- Close up: journalist listening
- Close up: journalist listening
- Medium shot: camera people and photographer in press room
- Medium shot: press room with journalists
- Wide shot: press briefing room with journalists
- Wide shot: press briefing room with journalists and speakers at the podium
Similar Stories
1
1
2
Edited News | UN WOMEN
Sudan: Women’s bodies ‘a crime scene’ as tens of thousands flee El Fasher atrocities – UN Women
In war-torn Sudan, rape is being systematically used as a weapon and simply being a woman is “a strong predictor” of hunger, violence and death, the UN’s gender equality agency warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) on Friday called for an end to continuing expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, where “unchecked” settler violence has surged since the war in Gaza began more than two years ago.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
The crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to worsen amid ongoing fighting that has driven tens of thousands of people from their homes and created acute hunger, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
Gaza: One million receive food parcels as humanitarians race to ‘push back hunger’
Food is slowly returning to the shelves in Gaza amid “apocalyptic scenes” but supplies are still desperately inadequate, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday, as they issued fresh calls for wider access and continued financial support.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango today told the bi-weekly UN press briefing in Geneva of more details that are emerging on the atrocities committed in El Fasher, in Sudan during and after its takeover by the Rapid Support Forces.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO
Sudan: UN Raises Alarm Over Mass Atrocities in El Fasher as Survivors Report Executions, Killings and Rapes
More details continue to emerge about atrocities committed during and after the fall of El Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan on 23 October. Since the powerful paramilitary group made a major incursion into the city last week, the UN Human Rights Office has received “horrendous accounts of summary executions, mass killings, rapes, attacks against humanitarian workers, looting, abductions and forced displacement,” said Seif Magango, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
Ukraine: Russian attacks on energy terrorize population as winter starts; could trigger major ‘crisis within crisis’
The UN’s top aid official in Ukraine expressed concern on Friday about “continuous attacks” on energy production sites and distribution facilities.
1
1
1
Edited News | HRC
Navi Pillay Retires After Decades Defending Human Rights and Pursuing Justice
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The telecommunications shutdowns in Afghanistan in September had serious and far-reaching impacts on people’s lives, according to a briefing paper published today by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Jeremy Laurence at the UN Geneva press briefing made the following comment on the ASEAN declaration on the right to a healthy environment.