Abstract
ICT has the biggest potential today to become a key vehicle for the socio-economic advancement of women. There exists a plethora of opportunities for ICTs to improve women's economic activities in the field of trade, governance, education, health, crafts, employment in formal as well as informal sectors. It can be used to fight many social issues and to empower weaker segments of society. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the opportunities which ICT can provide to improve the life of a woman in India. It will include the voices which speak of how women can fully participate and benefit from ICT and how ICT can be used as a tool to empower women. Women also should have an equal advantage of technology and the use of ICT should not be restricted to the upper section of the society. The aim here is to explore how women in India can improve their lives by using ICT. At last, it will also suggest ways on how all the segments of the female population can have benefited from technology.
TopLiterature Review
Women empowerment through ICT has captured the imagination of various individuals, scholars, enterprises and development organizations across the globe. The aim of the present literature review is to provide readers with a discussion of studies that encompass the use of ICT to empower women as perceived from researchers and women perspective. The majority of these studies have investigated how digital technologies have improved the condition of women.
Abdulwaheed et al. (2016)presented the role of ICT in agriculture knowledge management. The focus of this study is on the penetration of ICT in Nigeria and strategies to be adopted for enhancement of research and development in agriculture.
Hilbert (2011) analyzed whether there is a difference between men’s and women’s access to and use of ICT in developing countries. Data were analyzed from 12 Latin American and 13 African countries from 2005 to 2008. It revealed that in developing countries fewer women access and use ICT due to their unfavorable conditions to employment, education and income. If these variables are controlled, women turn out to be a more active user of digital tools than men. Also, it was found that digital technologies are tools that can improve living conditions, and tackle longstanding challenges of gender inequalities, including access to employment, income, education and health services.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Bhamashah Yojana: Bhamashah Yojana is a scheme introduced by the Government of Rajasthan to empower the financial condition of women. It envisages transferring financial and non-financial benefits of governmental schemes directly to women recipients in a transparent way. The scheme was inaugurated by Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje on 15 August 2014. The Bhamashah card is access to- Scholarship for the education of the students including girl child. Loan for starting a new business. Free medical treatment at selected hospitals for certain diseases and operations. Identification of the beneficiaries for free and subsidized ration.
I-Start: iStart Rajasthan is the flagship program by the Department of Information Technology and Communication, Government of Rajasthan to foster innovation, create jobs and facilitate investment in the State. iStart is an integrated comprehensive platform, which is a one-of-its-kind, single window resource for startups, investors, incubators, accelerators, and mentors. The focus of this initiative is on idea stage, early stage, and startups with MVP (Minimal Viable Product). This initiative helps the startups minimize the bureaucracy associated with the initiation of startup operations.
Mandi: In India Mandi is a big wholesale market where crops, vegetables and other items are sold directly by manufacturers / farmers/ artisans at a fair price, generally in bulk.
E-Sakhi: E-sakhi is a digital literacy programme initiated by the Department of Information Technology and Communication (DoITC), Government of Rajasthan, with the aim of making every individual in the state being digitally literate. Under eSakhi, the government will leverage the state’s “girl power”, wherein young women in the age group 20-35 will act as patrons in charting the course to a Digital Rajasthan. “A total of 1, 50,000 e-sakhis will be selected through an open competitive process who will work to make every Rajasthani digitally literate.