Through the current grant, a follow-up survey of ICT needs and uses was conducted in June-August 2016 using similar methods to the baseline. The idea behind this was to capture the growth in mobile access and ownership, see how mobile use has evolved, explore the uptake of data services (including zero-rated content), if and how information needs and sources have changed, among other questions. The survey also introduced a few questions aimed at assessing digital literacy in the population. While the initial objective was to cover the BOP only, the decision to conduct a nationally (i.e., all socioeconomic groups) representative baseline survey has similarly been applied for the follow-up survey. 2.1.2 Impact evaluation The continued analysis of the baseline survey data is directed towards a socioeconomic impact assessment of mobile phones in Myanmar. While the impacts have not yet been measured/calculated, the analysis conducted so far, led by Jorge Garcia Hombrados4, has been to determine the most appropriate empirical strategy to assess and understand the socioeconomic effects of improving the strength of the mobile phone signal in Myanmar. 2.2 Demand-side research: Qualitative 2.2.1 Gender and ICTs By March 2015, just over a year from liberalization, 39% of Myanmar’s population between the ages of 15-65 owned a mobile phone, according to the baseline survey conducted by LIRNEasia in 2015. The survey showed however, that women in Myanmar were 29% less likely to own a mobile phone than men. The initial analysis of the findings from LIRNEasia’s baseline survey on mobile use were presented by LIRNEasia CEO Helani Galpaya at the GSMA Mobile World Congress in March 2015 in Barcelona, Spain. After seeing the gender-disaggregated access numbers of the survey findings, LIRNEasia was approached by the Connected Women programme of GSMA to conduct a joint qualitative study to analyze the reasons for differences in mobile ownership between men and women. GSMA Connected Women provided funds to hire a vendor for the fieldwork and the design and printing of the final report (approximately USD 40,000), while LIRNEasia covered the cost of field travel for its researchers as well as its researcher time (approximately USD5,000) toward the cost. What resulted was a co-branded research report entitled Mobile phones, Internet and gender in Myanmar , which is being launched in Barcelona in February 2016 and in Myanmar in April 2016. The following research questions were explored through the joint-study, which was carried out in July 2015: o o o Why is there a mobile ownership gender gap in Myanmar? Why do many mobile owners in Myanmar not use mobile Internet? § Are there different reasons for men versus women? What are the opportunities to encourage more women to own and use mobile phones (especially mobile Internet) in Myanmar? 2.2.2 Free and subsidized data use LIRNEasia’s 2016 follow-up survey showed that despite 78% of mobile owners having Internet ready smartphones, only 49% reported using mobile data services. In a country where the mean monthly income is less than MMK 300,000 (USD 250), affordability remains an issue. 4 University of Sussex