NEW YORK, MARCH 12, 2024 – The Women in the Digital Economy Fund (WiDEF), a $60.5 million, five-year investment to accelerate progress in closing the digital gender gap, announces its first call for applications with recorded feedback by Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Samantha Power.
Founded by USAID and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and first announced by US Vice President Kamala Harris in Accra, Ghana, in March 2023, WiDEF will now begin identifying, funding and accelerating investment in solutions proven to close the digital gender gap.
”The digital gender gap hinders development progress, entrenching existing inequalities in the fabric of future societies, creating a self-perpetuating cycle and generating greater disparities. We need a future where women are empowered to participate as equal citizens in our increasingly digital world. “We look forward to working together to achieve that vision.” said Samantha Power, USAID Administrator.
“I am proud of our support for the Women in the Digital Economy Fund. Overcoming the digital gender gap is crucial to unlocking women's potential in the digital age. By increasing women's participation in digital technology, our goal is not only to change their status from consumers to creators and leaders; “We are working to forge a path to a future where everyone benefits.” said Anita Zaidi, president of the Gender Equality Division of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. [1]
This event, which brought together leaders from the public and private sectors and civil society from around the world, was an opportunity to celebrate the start of this effort and learn how WiDEF will implement its ambitious vision. Representing the Biden-Harris Administration at today's inaugural event was Rachel Vogelstein, deputy director of the White House Gender Policy Council.
Promoting access to digital technology for all women and girls is essential to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This will help ensure that everyone has access to economic opportunity and advancement, as well as government services, education and healthcare.
In low- and middle-income countries, nearly 1.5 billion women lack access to online services. As of 2022, there were 259 million more men than women worldwide using the Internet; a gap that has cost the global economy approximately $1 trillion. Closing the digital gender gap would increase economic activity by approximately $524 billion by 2025.
WiDEF is managed by CARE consortium partners, the Global Digital Inclusion Partnership (GDIP) and the GSMA Foundation. The consortium will collaborate with leading industry organizations to effectively engage local and global private sector actors and funders to advance a shared set of commitments to close the digital gender divide.
“WiDEF is about putting millions of women at the center of connectivity and information programming. CARE brings to the effort our strength in locally led, gender-focused programming in more than 100 countries. “The consortium’s collective focus on technology, policy and gender advocacy offers the greatest opportunity yet to create and sustain an Internet that works for the women who could benefit most from it.” said Revi Sterling, WiDEF Technical Director and CARE Senior Technical Director, Digital Inclusion.
“The launch of WiDEF is indeed a special moment, reflecting real commitment and determination to address the persistent digital gender gap and open up possibilities for women in the digital economy. GDIP is committed to the digital inclusion of women and we look forward to advocating alongside our global partners to advance this collective effort.” said Sonia Jorge, Executive Director of the GDIP.
“Closing the digital gender divide has been at the heart of the GSMA Foundation's work for over a decade, and we are extremely honored to play an active role in managing the Women in the Digital Economy Fund. We now expect to receive applications for the first round launched today and for two additional rounds to be announced later this year, focused on large private sector players and India specifically.” said Max Cuvellier Giacomelli, Director of Mobile Development at GSMA.
WiDEF will support and fund programs that promote digital access and affordability; develop relevant products and tools; provide digital literacy and skills training; promote online safety; and invest in sex-disaggregated data and research. It will support, wherever possible, women-led and gender-transformative solutions, products and tools and invest heavily to ensure that the voices and institutions closest to the digital gender divide are central to the effort.
As part of today's event, WiDEF announced the first call for applications, inviting local institutions from around the world to apply to receive funding and support from WiDEF. Applications must be submitted by May 6, 2024.
In addition to financial support from USAID and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, funding is also provided by Microsoft and the Korean International Cooperation Agency.[2] .
For more information, please send an email [email protected]Visit us online at widef.global or follow WiDEF on social media (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter/X).
About care
Founded in 1945 with the creation of the CARE Package®, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE places special emphasis on working alongside women and girls. Equipped with the right resources, women and girls have the power to lift entire families and communities out of poverty. This year, CARE and its partners worked in 109 countries implementing 1,671 humanitarian and development aid projects and initiatives to combat poverty that reached 167,000,000 people. For more information, visit www.care.org.
About GDPD
The Global Alliance for Digital Inclusion (GDIP) is a coalition of public, private and civil society organizations working to bring Internet connectivity to the global majority and ensure everyone is meaningfully connected by 2030. Founded by a global team of experts who successfully championed affordable services and With significant connectivity around the world, GDIP promotes digital opportunities to empower and support people's lives and agency, leading to inclusive digital societies.
GSMA Mobile Foundation for Development
The GSMA Mobile for Development Foundation, Inc. (“The GSMA Foundation”) brings together mobile operators, innovators, governments and the international development community to realize the positive social, economic and climate impact of mobile technology, primarily in countries low and medium levels. -income countries. With funding from donors and the GSMA, the GSMA Foundation runs programs that promote digital and financial inclusion, with a strong focus on gender inclusion, climate action, humanitarian response and investing in innovative digital solutions. Since 2007, these programs have impacted the lives of more than 220 million people.
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Media Contact:
Michael de Vulpillieres
CARE, Director, Media and Communications
[email protected]
