III WHAT IS ICT? Information and communications technology (ICT) includes all the newer technology used to handle telecommunications, broadcast, mobile social media, TV media, intelligent building management systems, audiovisual processing and transmission systems, and network-based control and monitoring functions. (12)ICT is normally considered an extended alternative word for information technology (IT), its scope is broader. ICT has more recently been used to describe the conjunction and combination of numerous technologies and the use of common transmission lines carrying very different data and communication types and formats.
(7) (12)IV ROLE OF ICTS IN GENDER EMPOWERMENT Now days the concept of Gender Equality is a common worry over the world. Due to the introduction of ICTs it has acquired new dimensions and magnitude to it. ICT has the prospective to bring about change and development to a nation and has already started taking these steps in different areas like education, etc. Information and communications technologies in current years have been known as an operational tool for encouraging economic growth and sustainable development. ICT have lower usage costs and the ability to overcome long distance in short time, ICTs have revolutionized and modernized the transfer of knowledge and information around the world. V ICT AND WOMEN Like other developing country In India also women play a central and key role in family, community and social development of country.
However, women often remain imperceptible and ignored. Women have to balance the difficulties and complexities of surviving in extreme poverty, up till now these women are excluded from discussion because they are often illiterate, they lack confidence and they lack mobility. ICT gives the chances for direct, interactive communication even by those who lack skills, who are illiterate or uneducated, lack mobility and have little self-confidence for their ability. Here are some aspects of life which have a direct effect of ICT specifically on women. (i) Women’s increased admission to job Market and improve entrepreneurship using ICT (ii) Increase of average household income in villages in rural areas. (iii) Women empowerment (iv) Shrinking and reduction of Information Asymmetry or irregularity through ICT. (v) Improved Governance and Authority (vi) Indigenous Knowledge development.
(vii) Easy-Family communication (viii) Increase Social awareness. Women needs information through ICT on following areas Free health services and child care services O Job openings in the low paid informal sector including domestic or home services O Housing availability especially in shantytowns O Free educational facilities, information regarding government programmers for poor Educational facilities and opportunities. o Career development and job opportunities.
o Low-priced health and childcare for women. o Economical an financial social support systems. o Legal rights and provisions against social injustice, domestic violence ; other issues.o Employment prospects in India and out of the country for women.o Fashion and market values. VII PRIORITIES AND STRATEGIES In order to emphasis and stress the efforts towards creating an enabling environment, it is important to identify specific priority areas. Two areas require particular attention: 1.
Integrate gender in ICT policy of government and 2. Participate and Involve women as active stakeholders in the information society. The following are specific strategies to address these priority areas. 1.
Integrate gender in ICT policy: • Demonstrate the gap impacts of ICT on women and men • Construct skills among policy-makers to ensure gender equality in ICT for development • Confirm that gender advocates educate themselves and get involved in the policy process • Investigate and revise prevailing ICT policies to replicate a gender perspective •Involvement of all stakeholders in the ICT policy process • Build peoples for gender equality in ICT development • Mobilize and organize resources for ICT development • Build mass of gender and ICT consultants. 2. Involve women as active stakeholders in the information society: • Create awareness and promote ICT as a tool for development of women• Build ICT skills for women and girls in college and societies. • Generate universal opportunity or chance to access ICT for women also • Inspire the development of content that is relevant to women. VII CONCLUSION Information needs for women as well as their ICT use are changing widely. There is no ideal ICT that fits all situations for. Women empowerment.
Despite the fact that women are engaged in numerous roles in agriculture and farm work , they are keen to have information on other parts, such as child health ; care, child nutrition, prevention and cure of common ; seasonal diseases of woman , good employment opportunities etc. For installment of ICTs for women empowerment their strategies depends on ICT use design and wide-ranging and different information requirements rural women empowerment. Promising dynamic and relevant information for rural women continues to remain as major issues. Sufficient resources need to be allocated and distributed for this activity, if profits from resources invested in connectivity and hardware have to be copiously realized.
