The revolution in information and communication technologies (ICTs) has vast implications for the developing world, but what tangible benefits has it bought, when issues of social inclusion and exclusion, particularly in the developing world, remain at large? In addition, the gender digital divide is growing in the developing world, particularly in Africa - so what does ICT mean to African women?African Women and ICTs explores the ways in which women in Africa utilize ICTs to facilitate their empowerment; whether through the mobile village phone business, through internet use, or through new career and ICT employment opportunities. Based on the outcome of a extensive research project, this timely books features chapters based on original primary field research undertaken by academics and activists who have investigated situations within their own communities and countries. The discussion includes such issues as the notion of ICTs for empowerment and as agents of change, ICTs in the fight against gender-based violence, and how ICTs could be used to re-conceptualize public and private spaces.ICT policy is currently being made and implemented all over Africa, but the authors argue that this is happening mostly in the absence of clear knowledge about the ways gender inequality and ICTs are impacting each other and that by becoming alert to a gender dimension in ICT developments at an early stage of the information revolution, we may be able to prevent greater scaled undesirable effects in the future.

ICT policy is being made and implemented all over Africa. This book explores the ways in which women in Africa utilize ICTs to facilitate their empowerment; whether through the mobile village phone business, through internet use, or through new career and ICT employment opportunities.

AcknowledgementsNotes on contributorsPrefaceIntroduction - Ineke Buskens and Anne Webb1. Doing research with women for the purpose of transformation - Ineke BuskensPart I: ICT tools: Access and Use2. Women's use of information and communication technologies in Mozambique: A tool for empowerment? - Gertrudes Macueve, Judite Mandlate, Lucia Ginger, Polly Gaster and Esselina Macome3. Considering ICT use when energy access is not secured: A case study from rural South Africa - Jocelyn Muller4. Women's use of cell phones to meet their communication needs - A study of rural women from northern Nigeria - Kazanka Comfort and John Dada5. Egyptian women artisans facing the demands of modern markets: Caught between a rock and a hard place - Leila HassaninPart II: Female Only ICT Spaces: Perceptions and Practices6. When a gender-blind access policy results in discrimination: Realities and perceptions of female students at the University of Zimbabwe - Buhle Mbambo-Thata, Elizabeth Mlambo, Precious Mwatsiya7. An alternative public space for women: The potential of ICTs - Leila Hassanin8. Using ICTs to act on hope and commitment: The fight against gender violence in Morocco - Amina Tafnout and Aatifa Timjerdine9. The names in your address book: Are mobile phone networks effective in advocating for women's rights in Zambia? - Kiss AbrahamPart III: Using ICTs: Making Life Better?10. Mobile phones in a time of modernity: The quest for increased self-sufficiency amongst women fishmonger and fish processors in Dakar - Ibou Sane and Mamadou Balla Traore11. Women entrepreneurs in Nairobi: Examining and contextualizing women's choices - Alice Wanjira Munyua12. Internet use among women entrepreneurs in the textile sector in Douala, Cameroon: self-taught and independent - Gisele Yitamben and Elise Tchinda13. ICTs as an agent of change: A case of grassroots women entrepreneurs in Uganda - Susan Bakesha, Angela Nakafeero and Dorothy Okello14. The mobile pay phone business: A vehicle for rural women's empowerment in Uganda - Grace Bantebya-KyomuhendoPart IV: Creating New Realities15. Professional women empowered to succeed in Kenya's ICT sector - Okwach Abagi, Olive Sifuna, Salome Awuor Omamo16. Reflections on the mentoring experiences of ICT career women in Nairobi, Kenya: Looking in the mirror - Salome Awuor Omamo17. Our journey to empowerment: The role of ICT - Ruth Meena and Mary RusimbiEpilogue - Ineke Buskens and Anne Webb