Introduction
I’m honoured to speak at the AI and Gender Equality panel organized by iLEAD AFRICA on March 24th, where we’ll explore how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can help break barriers and create opportunities for women and girls. As AI continues to transform industries and societies, its impact on gender equity and fairness cannot be ignored. Its potential to empower is immense, but it can also cause harm if not carefully designed and implemented.
Since AI is reshaping industries, we must ask: Is AI helping or harming gender equity and fairness? While AI offers immense potential to create opportunities for women and girls, it also risks reinforcing biases that exclude them. AI should be a bridge, not a barrier.
We need to explore how to leverage AI for gender equality in education, jobs, finance, and leadership. To ensure AI serves as a tool for empowerment, it is crucial to understand the issues and be deliberate in addressing its challenges while promoting gender-inclusive AI policies and development. The status quo is unacceptable.
The Potential of AI and Gender Equality
AI can transform gender equality in multiple ways:
- Education: AI-powered learning platforms can provide personalized learning experiences, improving education access for girls in underserved areas.
- Employment: AI-driven job matching platforms can connect women with remote work and flexible job opportunities.
- Leadership: AI can help identify and eliminate biases in hiring and promotion processes, ensuring women have equal leadership opportunities.
- Entrepreneurship: AI-powered fintech solutions can offer better access to credit and financial services for women-led businesses.
Challenges in AI and Gender Equality
Despite its promise, AI has also exacerbated gender disparities:
- Bias in Algorithms: AI-driven hiring tools have discriminated against women due to biased historical hiring data.
- Lack of Representation: Women severely underrepresented in AI development and policymaking, which means gender perspectives are often missing in AI design.
- Digital Exclusion: Many women, especially in Nigeria and other developing countries, lack access to AI education and digital skills.
Tech is for everyone. AI is for everyone. It is important to create a future where AI works for everyone!
Way Forward
To unlock AI’s potential for gender equality, we must:
✅ Develop Ethical AI: AI models should be trained on diverse and inclusive datasets to prevent bias.
✅ Encourage Women in AI and Tech: More awareness programs, mentorship, funding, ICT for girls schemes and scholarships for women in STEM. Tech mentorship is about opening doors! As a tech mentor, I’ve seen how the right guidance can help women and girls achieve in STEM, entrepreneurship, and leadership.
✅ Advocate for Gender-Inclusive AI Policies: Governments and organizations must prioritize gender in AI governance. Technology and innovation policies don’t just impact industries, they actually shape societies. AI must be built on principles of fairness and inclusion.
✅ Invest in Digital & AI Literacy: More programs to equip women with AI skills for the future workforce.
I’ve seen firsthand how mentorship can change lives in tech. But as AI shapes the future, we must ensure women and girls are not left behind.
Conclusion
Every new and powerful technology comes with its own challenges. It is left for creators and policy makers to ensure it is used for good and does not reinforce and worsen existing challenges and inequalities. AI has the power to break barriers or reinforce biases. Our approach will determine the future we create.
Tech for good means AI should be a force for inclusion, not exclusion. Technology matters, but its always about people. AI should be a force for empowerment, not exclusion.
The focus should be on how AI can close gender gaps, promote inclusion, and create opportunities. By addressing bias, promoting representation, and implementing ethical AI policies, we can leverage AI to break barriers for women and girls worldwide.
Mentorship in tech is about more than just skills—it’s about access, inclusion, and empowerment. AI can be a powerful tool for gender equality if used strategically and responsibly. I am grateful to iLEAD AFRICA for inviting me to be part of the discussion and look forward to have an enlightening and fruitful session.
Join me on March 24th as we discuss how to break barriers for women and girls in tech!
🔗 Join the conversation on March 24th! 📅
📍 Where? X (Twitter) Space: (@ilead4africa)
⏰ Time: 11:00 AM (WAT)
📢 Let’s shape a future where AI works for everyone!
Author: Jide Awe
Science, Technology and Innovation policy advisor.
Nigeria’s Inaugural Tech Mentor of the Year
Find him on LinkedIn Jide Awe on LinkedIn
Find him on Twitter @jidaw