Without decisive action digital revolution could fuel global gender inequality

Is technology both the saviour and saboteur of young people’s futures? It helps young people to transcend the physical, social, and economic barriers that stand between them and a decent job, but at the same time advances in automation and artificial intelligence could combine to see two-thirds of workers worldwide replaced by machines.

This is the focus of collaborative report, Digital Jobs for Youth: Young Women in the Digital Economy, for Solutions for Youth Employment (S4YE).

S4YE is a multi-stakeholder coalition housed in the Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice of the World Bank. The report was a joint exercise by the S4YE partnership, and was co-authored by The Rockefeller Foundation, Plan International, RAND Corporation and the World Bank. The report develops a new typology of digital jobs, draws on real-world experiences of S4YE partners, and provides operational recommendations on designing and implementing gender-inclusive intervention

The report examines the trends shaping digital work and includes contributions and case studies from Solutions for Youth Employment (S4YE) coalition members, drawing on evidence from peer organisations spanning five continents.

Through the work Genesis Analytics has done for the Rockefeller Foundation on the Digital Jobs Africa initiative, three Genesis staffers — Emily Massey, Tshegofatso Kgasago and Mishkah Jakoet — were co-authors of the report.

According to the chair of S4YE, Anne-Birgitte Albre, the publication is also is a call to action for the private sector, civil society, international organisations, and governments.

"To focus on the unique needs of girls and young women in a digital economy and to join forces to achieve inclusive digital employment for all. Because, without decisive action now, the global digital revolution might turn out to be a big backward step for global gender equality," Albre writes in the foreword.

The World Bank reports that technological advancement has given rise to a growing digital economy which continues to create new forms of work, transforming the employment landscape. Yet, joblessness persists. In 2017, approximately 65 million young people aged between 15 and 24 were unemployed. Youth labour force participation rates are on the decline globally, and over 22% of young people are not in employment, education or training (NEET). And women continue to lag behind men.

Developing gender-inclusive digital jobs programs for youth is the subject Digital Jobs for Youth: Young Women in the Digital Economy by Solutions for Youth Employment (S4YE). The report develops a new typology of digital jobs, draws on real-world experiences of S4YE partners, and provides operational recommendations on designing and implementing gender-inclusive interventions.

The new typology shows that “digital jobs” range from microwork-type jobs that need very basic ICT and cognitive skills to more formal ICT sector jobs like network administration that require advanced digital and analytical skills. Other types of digital jobs included are BPO sector jobs, virtual freelancing, digital platform-linked jobs, digital entrepreneurship or public sector driven jobs. Each category requires a different type of skill set. Using this typology, the report suggests, could help policy-makers assess existing levels of demand for skills and identify opportunities to stimulate job growth for a variety of target groups.

Digital Jobs for Youth extracts insights from 19 case studies based on past and ongoing employment programs implemented or supported by S4YE partners that connect youth with digital job opportunities. After reviewing program findings with youth beneficiaries, entrepreneurs, digital jobs program staff, and firms hiring youth, the report identifies 8 main challenges practitioners experience and present 20 high-potential strategies to overcome them.

For instance, the report finds that, despite best intentions, several digital jobs programmes struggled to recruit female youth beneficiaries. Family and household responsibilities impose severe time constraints, preventing them from attending training programs. Additionally, young women spend a disproportionate amount of time managing household and family responsibilities, when compared to young men. This makes it harder for them to engage in activities that will generate income or further their education.

In Kenya, Digital Divide Data (DDD)—a grantee of The Rockefeller Foundation’s Digital Jobs Africa initiative—offered face-to-face and online learning to provide youth with the flexibility to complete assignments according to their own schedules, while developing teamwork and communication skills. Plan International’s Saksham project in India used creative outreach methods including project announcements on cars and strategically located information kiosks, and social media ads with powerful girl-centred stories, for recruiting young women into their programme.