The 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW67), to be held between 6 and 17 March 2023, will have as its priority theme ‘innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls’.
Some of the topics to be discussed under this theme will include addressing barriers to bridge the gender digital divide and promote education in the digital age, and fostering inclusive innovation and technological change to empower women and girls and create safer digital spaces.
The meeting is open to UN member states, UN entities, and non-governmental organisations accredited by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
CSW is the main global intergovernmental body dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women, and it functions as a commission of ECOSOC.
For more details, consult the CSW67 dedicated website.
The first annual meeting of the ITU Partner2Connect Coalition will be held on 8 December from 09:30-17:30 CET at ITU’s Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
The Partner2Connect Digital Coalition (P2C) is a multistakeholder alliance to mobilize and announce new resources, partnerships, and commitments to achieve universal and meaningful connectivity. It was founded in 2021 by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), in line with the UN Secretary-General’s Roadmap for Digital Cooperation, in close cooperation with the Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology, and the United Nations Office of the High representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UNOHRLLS).
The one-day meeting will engage high-level representatives and pledge makers from government, private sector, civil society, and other sectors to learn about the progress on committments, discuss the challenges and opportunities for connecting the unconnected, as well as network and share experiences, which will further advance global digital transformation.
Further information about the event can be found on the official webpage.
In September 2022, the Ministry of Digital Transformation committed itself to the unveiling of up to 50 ICT Access Centres across the country by the year’s end. The commitment came on the heel of the release of the UNDP’s Digital Readiness Assessment Report in March 2022, which highlighted key problem areas for the country in its quest for whole-of-government, whole-of-society digital transformation as including:
1. The lack of access to broadband internet in public spaces and schools, regardless of area within the country.
2. Older residents and those outside of urban centres receive reduced digital benefits.
3. The effects of COVID-19 exacerbated digital divides on education level.
The Access Centres allow visitors to Connect and Create, Educate and Innovate, while the government has partnered with key organisations such as the Adult Literacy Tutors Association (ALTA) Online Programme, YTEPP, and the Microsoft Philanthropic Group to bring these goals to fruition.
To this date, twelve centres have been installed, while five are open and ready to serve.
