Women's inclusion in digital Bangladesh

Abstract

This study argues that enabling policy environments on ICT instituted by the Government of Bangladesh over the past six years may not have necessarily improved digital inclusion, particularly with respect to women. Rather, the digital inclusion of women is facilitated by both the individual's socio-demographic context (age, education and experience) and the citizenship status of her local community in ethnic and religious terms as well as its proximity to the capital. The study compares ICT access and usage among men and women in the ICT telecentres of purposively chosen villages. Field observations were conducted in the first village (Kapasia, Gazipur, Dhaka Division) from June to July 2014 and in the second village (Sharsha, Jessore, Khulna Division) from August to September 2014. Twenty men and women from each village were interviewed in-depth along with opinion and political leaders. Data analysis and interpretation are still ongoing.