In current times, in spite of the indisputable need to have far more women involved in IT & tech careers, the gender imbalance in the industry still remains far more stagnant than mobile. In this regard, a central issue to recognize is that gender imbalance in the tech field does not just suddenly surface at a time when young women embark on their careers. Rather, career expectations are molded at a very early stage in life and become further entrenched as girls grow up. A clear cognizance of this issue has led to this white paper being produced by the eco Association and released on the occasion of International Girls in ICT Day 2022. The paper is founded not just on top-notch research studies, but also on insights from 15 role models from IT & tech companies and associations in Europe, the US and Africa. Based on the findings and insights, the far-reaching white paper not only sets out lessons and recommendations for companies, but also key policy guidelines for policymakers & educators.
As the paper spells out, there are far less women than men employed as specialists in the Internet industry: In the US, just 26 percent of all tech professionals are women, while in the EU the figures hover just above 18 percent. The roots of this imbalance are embedded at an early age, with girls’ confidence starting to dip at the age of six, while by the age of 15, a startling ten times more boys than girls are interested in becoming tech professionals. It is therefore imperative for the whole of society to get to grips with the issues holding girls back in the tech field: this is the multi-faceted challenge that the white paper seeks to address.
