International Girls in ICT(Information and Communications Technology) Day is annually observed across the globe on the fourth Thursday in April to inspire the next generation girls and young women to prosper in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. The day also focus on the critical need for more girls and women in the ICT sector.
The International Girls in ICT Day 2022 falls on 28th April 2022.
- The International Girls in ICT Day 2021 was observed on 22nd April 2021.
- The International Girls in ICT Day 2023 will be observed on 27th April 2023.
The observance of the International Girls in ICT Day is annually organised by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), an United Nations(UN) specialized agency for ICTs.
The theme of International Girls in ICT Day 2022 is “Access & Safety”.
Background:
On 8th April 2011, ITU announced that the 4th thursday in april of every year will be observed as the International Girls in ICT Day.
- The first ever International Girls in ICT Day was observed in 28th April 2011.
The establishment of the Girls in ICT Day is the direct result of the adoption of Resolution 70 by ITU’s Plenipotentiary Conference in Guadalajara, Mexico, in October 2010.
Key Points:
i.According to ITU, globally around 48% of women use Internet compared to 55 % of men and globally only around 30% of tech science and technology professionals are women, this means that the global Internet use gender gap stands at 12.5%.
ii.According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), closing the global gender gap has increased by a generation from 99.5 years to 135.6 years.
Events:
i.On the occasion of International Girls in ICT Day, an interactive global dialogue “Girls in ICT Global Dialogue on Access and Safety” is hosted in the framework of the 2022 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum.
ii.The dialogue is hosted as a part of Gender Mainstreaming track in which the forum promotes and maintains gender equality and women empowerment, guaranteeing the inclusion of women in STEM or ICT.
iii.The discussions will focus on 4 main topics: Equal Access; Accessibility; Gender stereotypes and workplace environments; and Safety Online:
About International Telecommunication Union (ITU):
ITU established in 1865 is linked to the UN through a special agreement, which formally came into force on 1 January 1949 recognizes ITU as a UN specialized agency.
Secretary-General- Houlin Zhao
Headquarters– Geneva, Switzerland
