Gender Gap
The gender gap is about who gets online, who builds the technology, and who gets targeted on it.
Worldwide, 77% of men use the internet, compared with 71% of women: about 280 million more men than women. By the ITU's own measure, the gap is no smaller than it was in 2019.1 In low- and middle-income countries, women are 14% less likely than men to use mobile internet, and progress has stalled. Women who are online often use it less, citing safety, the cost of data and phones, and poor connections.2
Across Europe, women and men now go online at similar rates.1 In the UK, the gap shows up elsewhere. Women are 22% of IT specialists; if they were as well represented in IT as in the workforce overall, there would be 530,000 more. Black women make up 0.6%.3 And 1 in 3 UK women have experienced online abuse or harassment, rising to almost 2 in 3 among women aged 18–34.4
We work alongside women and girls on the barriers above, from getting online safely to dealing with online abuse.