Women empowerment at the click of a button!

New Delhi: The internet has literally given women a new lease of. No kidding here. From connecting with the right people to being able to share their deepest and darkest fears, the internet has given them wings and the ability to step out of the threshold of conformities and carve their own identities.

Internet can and has played a very important role in empowering women in India and helping them transform their lives. Internet can help women achieve self-esteem, express their views freely, open up new opportunities and help them to gain education.

Although, a survey conducted by Google recently said that only one-third of the total Indian population with access to the Internet are women. The survey also revealed that 49% of women find no reason to access the Internet.

“While there is low awareness about the benefits of Internet amongst women in India, there are many who want to get online to succeed in life,” said Sandeep Menon, country head marketing for Google India.

The study conducted was titled as “Women & Technology” and it involved 828 Indian women aged from 8 to 55. Various factors such as connection issues, affordability and time were taken as the key constraints for accessing the Internet.

A number of women said that they did not find much leisure time after completing their household activities to access the internet. So respondents said that their in-laws would get angry if they spend much time over the internet.

The report also pointed out that smartphones and Internet cafes could be a cheaper, more private way for Indian women to access the Internet.

Also, number of respondents said that if they had more privacy, they would use the internet more. The survey also had a look at income and demographic differences between Internet users and non-users. Women who are online were observed to be with higher income.

Most of the users are younger, singles and students. The non-users were found to be slightly older and more likely to be married with children. The survey revealed that younger women are keen to get online, and 32% of all non-Internet users plan to use the Internet soon, and 46% of non-users in the age group from 18 to 29 are likely to use the Internet soon.

Google also launched a new film to inspire young digital natives to bring their mothers online.

“There is large number of educated women in India with Internet access in their households, but they still do not use the Internet. We are making an appeal to their children to hold their mother’s hand as she discovers a new world online,” Menon concluded.

 

Take Aways:

 

Reasons for women not using internet:

• No time after household chores
• In–laws objection
• Lack of privacy

Who use it?

• Women with higher income
• Young, single, student

Who doesn’t use it?

• Older
• Married, with children

The Number Game:

• One-third of the total Indian population with access to the Internet are women
• 46% of non-users in the age group from 18 to 29 are likely to use the Internet soon.
• 49% of women find no reason to access the Internet.