Deadline: 14 November 2022 midnight IST for WomenConnect Challenge India
Request for Applications forWomenConnect Challenge India. USAID and Reliance Foundation created the WomenConnect Challenge India in 2020 to help identify innovative solutions to bridge the gender digital divide across India. This Challenge supports new approaches that close this gap, expand business opportunities for women, and support women to empower themselves and their communities.
While most of the world is becoming increasingly connected, the gender gap in mobile internet use in some countries is over 51 percent. In 2017 only 19% of women in India were aware of mobile internet; in 2020 this increased to 53%. In terms of ownership, 67% of women own a mobile phone compared to 79% men. Advancing women’s digital connectivity is a key component to ensuring women’s economic empowerment. To date, USAID has funded three rounds of the WomenConnect Challenge grantees working to address barriers limiting women’s access to technology and to connect nearly 6 million women in 16 countries.
In partnership with Reliance Foundation, this fourth round of the challenge focuses on India’s gender and technology gap and support solutions to improve women’s participation in everyday life by meaningfully changing the ways women access and use technology. From over 200 applications, 20 semi-finalists participated in the Solver’s Symposium (link) to help refine their proposals. Ten awardees were chosen in 2021 to apply local, culturally-contextual innovative solutions to closing the gender digital divide (link to an upcoming press release). This Community of Practice is intended to support and showcase their work while creating a space for all organizations involved in digital inclusion to collaborate and build momentum to close this gap for good!
https://womenconnectindia.com/dashboard/about
Deadline for Submission of Stage One Applications: 14 November 2022 | midnight (Indian Standard Time)
Details of the Request for Application: Click here