How are digital rights for women and marginalised groups going?
On March 11, 2025, Oxfam Ireland hosted a virtual parallel event at the NGO CSW69/Beijing+30 Forum discussing the challenges and opportunities surrounding the rights of women and marginalised groups in the digital age. The NGO CSW Forum, held alongside the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), is an annual gathering that brings civil society together to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment. This platform provides a crucial opportunity for organisations and activists to engage in policy discussions and advocate for women's rights.
The session, titled "How are digital rights for women and marginalised groups going?", featured panellists from Femtech Law Initiative in Uganda, Oxfam in Somalia, and Fundación InternetBolivia.org . Together, they explored the challenges women and marginalised groups face in the digital world, discussed the impact of digital inequalities and harms, and stressed the need for multilateral solutions that involve local, regional, and international stakeholders. Over 130 participants attended the session, which demonstrated the importance of centring digital rights in our collective efforts to achieve gender equality.
Here are some highlights from the discussion. You can also watch the full recording of the session here.
Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TF GBV)
A key issue discussed during the event was Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TF GBV), a form of violence facilitated by the use of digital technologies like smartphones, social media, and the Internet against a person on the basis of gender. TF GBV includes harassment and digital hate, cyberstalking, and the sharing of intimate images without consent.
Lu An Mendez (Fundación InternetBolivia.org) shared that in Bolivia, digital sexual violence remains the most reported form of TF GBV.
“Uganda has normalised a culture of violence in online spaces with the belief that just because it is online, doesn’t mean it’s violence.”
Asha Abshir (Oxfam in Somalia) discussed the prevalence of TF GBV on social media in Somalia, with women being subjected to the leaking or alteration of their private photos, as well as abuse. Similarly in Uganda, Yasmin Ahmed (Femtech Law Initiative) shared that women face harassment and digital hate, particularly on social media where digital violence is sometimes dismissed as behaviour that is not as real and dangerous as violence that occurs in person;
Across the three countries, these forms of digital violence are often overlooked by authorities, law makers, and the general public, highlighting the urgent need for awareness, action, and support for women and girls who face these risks.
Digital Literacy
Another prominent issue addressed in the session was the digital divide, which disproportionately affects women and girls, particularly in low-resource and conflict-affected areas.
Digital literacy is the ability to use technology and the internet effectively and responsibly. It includes skills like navigating websites, using social media, understanding online safety, and knowing how to search for and evaluate information. In today’s world, being digitally literate is essential for education, work, and staying connected.
However, women and girls often face more obstacles in developing digital literacy skills. In many parts of the world, women and girls may have less access to technology or face societal barriers that limit their ability to learn digital skills. This can create a digital divide, leaving them at a disadvantage.
“The gendered digital divide refers not only to access, to connectivity, but also to having the necessary skills and using them to exercise rights.”
Panellists discussed the digital divide in the context of their respective countries. In Bolivia, economic factors, gender roles, and biases in education limit women’s access to digital technologies.
In Somalia, women, particularly those in rural areas or internally displaced persons (IDPs), face barriers to accessing digital technologies.
“(Rural women and women in marginalised communities face) difficulties in accessing digital platforms due to illiteracy, lack of technological devices, and safety concerns in online spaces.”
In Uganda, women are also disadvantaged in terms of digital literacy. Issues like unpaid care work, gender norms, and education inequality further limit their ability to access and use digital technologies;
“There is definitely low levels of digital literacy… when I say literacy, I mean both digital literacy and actual literacy rates. You have high numbers of girls who, whilst they do start school, they do drop out… if they do not study, they do not understand the language… so if they cannot understand English, they cannot meaningfully participate online and use digital technology.”
These barriers contribute to the digital divide, leaving women and girls with fewer opportunities to access education, employment, and other essential services via digital technologies.
Key priorities: calls for action on digital safety and inclusion
Attendees were asked to identify the most urgent digital issues affecting women and marginalised groups. The top concerns were: ‘Digital safety issues that disproportionately affect women and marginalised groups’, ‘Women and marginalised groups’ limited digital literacy skills’, and ‘General lack of regulation and protections for women and marginalised groups in digital environments’.
These challenges are complex and require thoughtful solutions that adequately address deeper, systemic causes that make them worse, like unfair treatment or limited opportunities for women and marginalised groups. To fix these problems, respondents and panellists agreed on the need to focus on helping those who are most at risk, tackling the underlying inequalities that make these problems worse, and finding ways to help women and girls catch up in the digital world.
Specifically in regards to actions the Commission on the Status of Women should prioritise, respondents emphasised the need for inclusive, effective efforts to address the digital inequality that harms women and girls. This means ensuring women and girls have access to the benefits of technology and the ability to use it safely and effectively. It also involves the ability to participate and lead in the design, development, and regulation of technology. When asked what concrete actions the Commission should prioritise to promote digital inclusion and protect the digital rights of women and marginalised groups, the following suggestions were made:
Question: “What concrete actions should the Commission on the Status of Women prioritise to achieve digital inclusion and promote the digital rights of women and marginalised groups?”
“The guarantee of access for women, girls and adolescents, from organisational paradigms that confront Big Tech with their own narratives, and concrete actions of digital care for all women.”
“Develop gender responsive policies and measures that would protection women and girls, men and boys from the impact of digital technology and perpetuation of gender-based violence and marginalisation.”
“Prioritise advocating for policies that ensure equitable access to digital technologies and implementing digital literacy programs for women and marginalised groups.”
“Projects investing in ensuring affordable broadband infrastructure in rural and underserved areas.”
“Conduct research and support in comprehensive solutions over the many dimensions [that] are entwined and amplifying obscured digital violence, such as systemic economic, labour and sexual exploitation.”
“Keeping women and girls safe online through education, raising awareness and campaign work.”
Panellists identified key priorities to advance digital inclusion and promote the digital rights of women and marginalised groups, including: engaging in research to better understand the issues faced by marginalised and vulnerable groups as well as identify gaps in policy, supporting the digital inclusion of women, a multistakeholder approach to digital rights protection, and the centring of digital inclusion by international actors.
Research and knowledge sharing:
“It is important to collect disaggregated data on marginalised communities because it is crucial to understand the specific needs and challenges so we can tailor initiatives to suit marginalised communities.”
To protect digital rights, understanding the problems is essential. Research helps pinpoint where the gaps are and how policies and solutions can be designed to address these issues.
Supporting the digital inclusion of women:
“We have observed there is a great need for investment in technology infrastructure, particularly in digital literacy programmes and online safety for women and marginalised groups so that they are not victimised later.”
Providing resources like workshops, training, and materials helps women and girls develop the digital literacy and skills necessary to participate in the digital world. Panellists also discussed the importance of encouraging and enabling women’s active participation in the design and development of technology.
A multistakeholder approach:
Another priority is involving a wide range of people and organizations with a role to play in creating digital rights protections. Governments at every level (local, regional, international), civil society organizations (CSOs), and the private sector all need to work together to create solutions. This multistakeholder approach ensures that everyone’s voice is heard, especially when it comes to making fair and inclusive policies that protect everyone.
International actors:
“We really need international actors to prioritise digital inclusion, to make sure that digital inclusion is a fundamental part of gender equality policies and international organisations.”
International organisations have the power and influence to bring different groups together and lead by example. By centring digital inclusion in policy creation, international actors can guide the way for local and regional duty bearers to do the same.
What Oxfam Ireland Is Doing
Oxfam Ireland’s ReCIPE (Recentering the Civic Internet through Partner Engagement) project works with partner organisations in 10 countries to increase access to digital technologies, improve digital literacy, support marginalised and vulnerable communities, and drive a multi-stakeholder global process to create an inclusive digital ecosystem.
The project helps Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the communities they support, particularly women and girls, attain the access and digital literacy needed to participate socially and politically in the digital world through:
- Digital rights awareness campaigns,
- Digital literacy, security, and content discernment workshops and trainings,
- Collaborating with partners to create reliable tools for digital security and safety, tailored to support the specific needs and contexts of their intended users.
The project also engages in research to identify gaps in government policy and the practices of the private sector, advocates for digital rights, and supports CSOs to ensure their voices are heard in digital governance discussions.
Our goal is to foster a global movement for digital rights, ensuring that digital technologies are inclusive, safe, and fair for everyone.
To learn more about the digital rights issues women and girls face and the solutions needed, watch the recording of our virtual parallel event at the NGO CSW69/Beijing+30 Forum here.