Mobiles for development or poverty?

The Mobile Active 08 conference is underway in Johannesburg from 13 to 15 October 2008 with fascinating presentations, one being on how women, in particular, have benefited from the use of mobile technology. “When a woman’s position improves, the environment benefits and while technology improves it also affects gender relations”, Dr Kutoma Wakunuma said in her presentation that aimed to unravel the social economic implications of cellular phones among women in Africa.

Dr Kutoma revealed that there is no difference in how men and women use cellular phones and also no difference in the socio-economic potential of mobile usage. She unveiled that mobiles phones decrease isolation among women in society and provide easy and fast communication, especially as the price of mobile phones is becoming cheaper by the day. She added that cellular phones encourage job creation for women who sell airtime and those who run public phone stations. They help in emergencies and danger and have made a major impact in health information as some people access counselling through mobile phones on an anonymous basis.

On the other hand Kathleen Diga, one of the presenters, shared a story of women in Uganda who survive on an allowance from their husbands or partners, of less than a dollar a day. These women use mobile phones to avoid travel costs and they sacrifice basic needs such as food in order for them to buy airtime so that they can effectively use their mobile phones. Some of these women sacrifice store-bought food and replace it with garden food, all so they can buy airtime. Adding to the downsides of mobile cellular usage, Dr Kutoma divulged that they have resulted in social strife between couples, have promoted promiscuity to some and have been a major cause of violence in many families. She added that mobile phones have contributed to the reproduction of gender roles and have reinforced gender stereotypes.

Examples were given on how women get battered by their husbands who justify their actions, saying that their wives are having relationships because of mobile phones. Some women are even forced to sell their mobile phones because they are afraid of being divorced by their husbands, on whom they are financially dependent. “What is sad is that some of these women are the ones who generate money at home and their husbands are not working. But they still have to ask for permission from their husbands before they can make a call. Also, a husband can demand money for airtime anytime regardless of whether it was budgeted for or not”, a delegate from Kenya pointed out.

These are the sad but true realities regarding gender equality in Africa, particularly around the use of mobile technologies. More gender research and education around mobile technology usage has been recommended as a way forward and with a view to achieve gender equality in the use of mobile technologies. Some even suggested that mobile phones should be used to educate and empower women with skills, instead of dealing with what has been labelled as symptomatic issues such as poverty. While the use of mobile phones increases and is encouraged the question that remains, however, is whether the sacrifices of basic needs for airtime are contributing to the detriment or empowerment of women?