In collaboration with the Women’s Entrepreneurship Accelerator (WEA), Mary Kay welcomes the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a specialized agency of the United Nations for information and communication technologies, as the organizations partner together to provide critical digital skills for women entrepreneurs around the world. These efforts are especially important in developing countries, where only a small fraction of women (19%) use or benefit from the internet.
“Digital literacy isn’t a nice-to-have anymore—it’s a necessity,” said Deborah Gibbins, Chief Operating Officer of Mary Kay Inc. “It’s crucial that women in developing and least developed countries are given access to high-quality, highly-effective digital skills training so they can equally compete with entrepreneurs from developed markets. Through our work with WEA and ITU, we’re going to make it happen.”
The initiative, named “Bridging the Digital Gender Divide,” will be translated into several languages and will continue working towards the WEA’s goal of creating an enabling ecosystem for women entrepreneurs to thrive, and to advance inclusive and sustainable growth. Women in this program will have access to a free, high-quality curriculum that helps them acquire the digital skills necessary to advance in the digital economy.
