The session’s main theme is “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls.
In an effort to achieve gender equality and guarantee the right to education for women and girls everywhere, Pakistan has called for closing the digital gender gap as the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) continued its discussion on women’s issues.
According to Nilofar Bakhtiar, chair of the National Commission on the Status of Women, “it is time to build resilient, inclusive, and peaceful societies where no one is left behind, not even our women with disabilities,” in order to prevent a repeat of the brave but tragic story of Malala Yousafzai.
The session’s main theme is “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls.” It takes place from March 6 to March 17.
The Pakistani delegate, Bakhtiar, stated in her remarks that the digital gender gap was expanding despite national and international efforts, particularly between developed and developing countries and within developing countries.
She emphasised the need for transformative action while urging the mobilisation of funds and technical assistance to support the millions of women and girls who have been denied the right to receive an education, particularly as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects of the crisis caused by global climate change.
A staggering 130 million girls were already out of school before the pandemic struck, and it was predicted that 11 million of them would never go back to school in 2021. Bakhtiar continued: “The international community must take transformative action in light of the alarming statistics.
The Pakistani delegate added that there was a pressing need to promote greater female participation in STEM-related fields of study as well as the elimination of parental preferences and curricula that still contain gender biases. Also encouraging women and girls to pursue careers in technology and digital fields, according to her, is the projection of female role models in these fields.
In order to stop harassment online, Bakhtiar urged authorities, companies, and social media platforms to promote digital safety and security. The Pakistani delegate also advocated for making internet access free for everyone so that teachers, students, and schools have access to universal broadband connectivity.