MOBILE PHONES, INTERNET, AND GENDER IN MYANMAR MOBILE PHONES, INTERNET, AND GENDER IN MYANMAR Box 1 Connected Women research on bridging the gender gap in mobile access and usage in low- and middle-income countries GSMA Connected Women has made much progress in investigating the gender gap in mobile ownership in many low- and middle-income countries over the last five years. In its most recent study, Bridging the gender gap: Mobile access and usage in low- and middle-income countries,33 men and women in 11 countries were studied to find out how many women in low- and middle-income countries own mobile phones, how intensively they use them, and the barriers to mobile phone adoption and use compared to men. Data was collected from primary and secondary sources, including 11,000 closed-ended, face-to-face interviews with both men and women, 77 focus group discussions in Niger, India, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Mexico, Indonesia, China, Turkey, Kenya, Colombia, Egypt, and Jordan. Source: GSMA Intelligence and World Bank data, Altai Consulting analysis Mobile phone ownership in low- and middle- income countries Population (billions) 2.9 16 3.0 1.7 1.2 1.4 33. GSMA Connected Women and Altai Consulting, 2015 • Over 1.7 billion females in low- and middle-income countries do not own mobile phones. • Women, on average, are 14% less likely to own a mobile phone than men, which translates into 200 million fewer women than men owning mobile phones. • Women in South Asia are 38% less likely to own a phone than men, highlighting that the gender gap in mobile phone ownership is wider in certain parts of the world. • Even when women do own mobile phones, there is a significant gender gap in mobile usage which prevents them from reaping the full benefits of mobile phone ownership. Women report using phones less frequently and intensively than men, especially for more sophisticated services such as mobile internet. In most countries, fewer women than men who own phones report using messaging and data services beyond voice. • Cost remains the greatest overall barrier to owning and using a mobile phone, particularly for women, who are often less financially independent than men. • Security and harassment emerged as one of the top five barriers to mobile phone ownership and usage, and is a key concern for women. • Women also cite service delivery issues (network quality and coverage and agent or operator trust) and technical literacy and confidence as key barriers to mobile phone ownership and use. • Social norms influence women’s access to and use of mobile technology, and often contribute to women experiencing barriers to mobile phone ownership and use more acutely than men. 1.6 Females Key findings of the study: Males Total population • Women understand the inherent value of mobile phones and a ‘lack of perceived value’ is no longer a top barrier to mobile phone ownership, indicating a positive shift in attitudes in the last five years. • Systemic barriers, including the lack of gender disaggregated data at all levels (mobile subscribers, national statistics) and unconscious biases within organisations, have kept the focus off women and sustained the gender gap in ownership and usage. Unconnected population Taken together, these findings indicate the gender gap in mobile ownership and usage are driven by a complex set of socio-economic and cultural barriers negatively affecting women.34 Mobile phone owners Note: There are 80 million fewer females than males in low- and middleincome countries: unconnected population includes individuals who do not own, but may borrow phones. 34. A number of recommendations for stakeholders can be found in the report: http://www.gsma.com/connectedwomen/resources-2/gender-gap/ 17