Technology, Economic and Societal Opportunities and Women

The Association for Progressive Communications (APC), the Government of Kenya and the International Chamber of Commerce’s (ICC) BASIS initiative (Business Action to Support the Information Society) organised a workshop Technology, Economic and Societal Opportunities and Womenduring the just ended IGF in Baku.

The focus was on existing Internet-related economic, cultural, political and social opportunities for women, and the gaps that exist. I participated as a lead discussant and I must say that participants enjoyed a stimulating debate which raised a couple of issues and made several recommendations. I will just highlight some of the issues.

Antoaneta Angelova-Krasteva of DG CONNECT pointed out that In order to reap the full benefits of modern technology; women need digital rights and cultural participation. There is still low participation of girls in science subjects and ICTs. Therefore investment in infrastructure must go together with digital skills for women.

Alice Munyua representing the government of Kenya observed that Cyber violence is prevalent and affects women differently. She called on ISPs to come up with a focus on women in their user policies and recommended a multistakeholder response, with policies not only from government, but also from business and the technical community in the provision of services and development of contracts

Yara Salam spoke about online campaigns on human rights defenders in Egypt. She pointed out that women are afraid to socialize in public spaces in Egypt less their pictures are taken and posted on face book in particular if they are drinking or breastfeeding. How can such women protect themselves online? She raised the question of how important is localization of issues so that cultural limitations can be dealt with? Should there be more support from authorities for online human rights defenders?

Theresa Swinehart of ICC pointed out that there are many women emerging in internet governance leadership. However work still needs to be done so that conversations are created to inspire more women. “Business must invest in infrastructure in a responsible way so that women are involved”. She emphasized the importance of the free flow of information, and discussed the factors that limit online participation by women, including literacy and influence in government.

Grace Githaiga from KICTANet gave examples of Kenya’s constitutional provision meant to empower women but which are proving a challenge on how to implement for example in job opportunities where women do not apply, or in electoral positions where they do not present their candidature. Women’s issues are still considered a soft issue by legislators, and a formula for implementation of the third gender rule is needed. She emphasized the importance of online services that are relevant and resonate with women's daily lives and aspirations.

P. Usha Ranid from India reported that they are using mobile based technology for improving agricultural practices and in health where they monitor their babies’ weights and record on charts.

A participant was concerned that we may be hurting women’s interests when we group them broadly considering that experiences are different between the developed and the developing countries. She wondered whether service providers have different terms of use by women user and whether there is need for programs that are in accordance with religious norms.

George Nyabuga of Afrinic felt that technology is never neutral and that culture and social norms are a hindrance to women embracing technology. “The kinds of effects we get arise from modality of use and unless there is a serious cultural change, technology will not change the way things are done”. He highlighted the way in which online abuse reflects offline marginalization, and the importance of culture shifts offline in order to improve women's empowerment both online and offline. Therefore “we must engage in ways that will impact cultural change of how we conduct business and therefore technology”.

Lilian Naluoga from Uganda talked of the need to profile role models and on women who have made it against all odds in their work on ICTs. “We need role models to inspire girls to study science subjects and ICTs”.

Some of the recommendations that emerged from the session were that there is need for sustained multistakeholder dialogue on strategies for women's leadership and active participation on Internet-related activities and empowerment.

Further, programmes and recommended solutions to address issues of access and empowerment for women and girls must take into account multiple dimensions – economic, political as well as importantly, social and cultural issues.  And most important is that the session on women and IG must be institutionalized so that it takes place in all IGFs.

In thanking the participants, Ayesha Hassan of ICC, pointed out that the session on women and IG started in Nairobi, Kenya in 2011, and as a result, women issues have come up in 2012 IGF on the Access and Diversity sessions. “This meeting therefore is a building block” she concluded.

Kenyan Hospitals

Ministers Charity Ngilu and Anyang Nyongo have one thing in common. In their CVs, is that one is a former and the other is a current minister for health in the Kenya Govt. Yet, they both do not trust the Kenyan hospitals. What should ordinary citizens make of this?

Africa News Online: THE OCTOBER 31 POLL IS THE REAL DEAL FOR TANZANIANS

Africa News Online: THE OCTOBER 31 POLL IS THE REAL DEAL FOR TANZANIANS

whats on your mind?

I want to find out whats happening around the World. Time to catch up with my favourite newspapers ie Daily Nation, The Washington Post, New York Times etc. Really enjoying this break.

Media Ethnography: theory and practice

I have been attending a seminar on media ethonography: theory and practice at Pappersbruket, Osby in Southern Sweden. The course was designed to introduce PhD students to the theory and practice of media ethnography. It explored how media ethonography applies to both media production and media reception, and how it is fundamentally both a theory and a method for investigating everyday practices and lived experiences as tehy are shared by culturally-specific ways of being-in the world.

The venue was nice, the food great, and new friendships from different Univeristies from created. Nice now to know Jacob (Arhus), Nana (Arhus), Rose (Dar es salam),  Bram (Utrecht), Meltem (Johann Wolfgang Goethe University), Johanna (Orebro), Florencia (Karlstad), Rikke (Uni of Copenhagen), Siri (Martin Luther Uni), Helena (Westminister), Maja (Uni of Southern Denmark) and Maria Ines (Universidae Nova de Lisboa (Portugal).  Thanks to the Professors Thomas Tufte (Roskilde) John Postil (Sheffield), Debra Spitulnik (Emory Uni, USA), and Jo Tachi (Queensland, Australia).

Ways in which different epistemological frameworks within the field of media studies have influenced methodological approaches (Grace Githaiga)

The common frameworks used in the field of communication are quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods approaches.
In a quantitative approach, the researcher uses post positivist claims for developing knowledge i.e. developing generalizations about the relations between social ‘facts’ that establish basic connections of cause and effect. To achieve this, the approach calls for the continual testing of existing evidence to see whether the specific predictions (hypotheses) they generate are supported (verified) or disapproved (falsified). Testing requires the researcher to isolate the relations s/he is particularly interested in, from other factors that may influence or interfere with them.

In qualitative approach, the researcher makes knowledge claims based on constructionist perspectives. The concern is not with establishing relations of cause and effect but with exploring the ways that people make sense of their social worlds, and how they express these understandings though language, imagery, sound and social rituals. The focus is on the organizing structures of social and cultural life that are seen as being continually reproduced and modified through a myriad activities of everyday life.

In the mixed method approach, the researcher tends to base knowledge claims on practical grounds. Here, the researcher bases the inquiry on the assumption that collecting diverse types of data best provides an understanding of a research problem. Data collection involves gathering both numeric information, as well as interviews. The final database represents both quantitative and qualitative information.

Research design considers four aspects which ultimately inform a choice of approach:
(a) The epistemology theory that informs the research
(b) The philosophical stance behind the methodology
(c) What governs the choice of use and use of methods, and
(d) The techniques to be used to collect data.

These become critical in addressing questions central to the design of research.
Before a researcher decides on which framework to choose, it is useful to consider three frameworks elements that contribute to the framing of the quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods. These are philosophical assumptions about what constitutes knowledge claims; what strategies of inquiry will inform the procedures, and what methods of data collection and analysis will be used.

Stating a knowledge claim means that the researcher has certain assumptions about how and what s/he will learn during the inquiry. These assumptions at times are referred to as epistemologies or broad research methodologies which can be categorized into four schools of thought: post positivism, constructivism, advocacy/participatory and pragmatism.

Post positivism is also referred to as the ‘scientific method’. It reflects a philosophy in which causes determine effects or outcomes. An issue studied by post positivist reflects a need to examine causes that influence outcomes. It is therefore viewed as reductionist in that it reduces ideas/issues into small, discrete set of ideas to test for example variables that constitute hypothesis and research questions.
The post positivist begins with a theory, and then makes necessary revisions before additional tests are conducted. Certain key assumptions are made among them that research is a process of making claims and then refining or abandoning some of them for other claims more strongly warranted, and that data, evidence and rational considerations shape knowledge. Also, being objective is an essential aspect of competent inquiry. As such researchers must examine methods and conclusions for bias.

Social constructivism is another process with its own set of assumptions. Its assumptions hold that individuals seek understanding of the world in which they live and work and develop subjective meanings of their experiences. These meanings are varied and multiple. This leads the researcher to look for the complexity of views, rather than narrow meanings into a few categories or ideas. The research questions are broad and general so that the participants can construct the meaning of a situation. The questions are open ended and allows the researcher to listen carefully to what people say or do in their life setting.

Specific methods of data collection is another consideration that goes into a research approach. Methods are considered by their degree of predetermined nature, their use of closed ended versus open ended questioning, and their focus for numeric versus non numeric data analysis.

Knowledge claims, the strategies, and the method all contribute to a research approach which may be quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods.

Apart from the approaches, the researcher is also influenced by the research problem, personal experiences, and the audiences for whom the report will be written.

In terms of the research problem, different issues call for different interventions. For example if the problem is to identify factors that influence an outcome, the utility of an intervention or understanding the best predicators of outcomes, then a quantitative approach is best. And if a concept needs to be understood, because little research has been done on it, or the researcher does not know the important variables to examine, or the topic is new or has never been addressed with a sample or existing theories, then the qualitative approach is the best. However if a researcher wants to generalize the findings to a population and develop a detailed view of the meaning of a concept, then a mixed method approach is useful as it will allow collecting both closed-ended quantitative data and open ended qualitative data.

In terms of personal experiences, the researcher’s choice would be influenced by his/her experiences and training. A quantitative research may call for experience in scientific writing, statistics or computer statistical programs. A qualitative approach also calls for experience in open-ended interviews and observations. Mixed methods require familiarity with both quantitative and qualitative methods and understanding of the rationales for combining both.

Audiences to who research findings will be presented do contribute to shaping the decision of the research approach. The experiences of these audiences with quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods shapes the decision on the choice.

In summary, a researcher assesses knowledge claims brought into a study, considers the strategy of inquiry that will be used, and identifies specific methods. Based on these, the researcher then identifies either the quantitative, qualitative or mixed method approach of inquiry.

Talk at the American news women’s club, Tuesday November 18, 2008

Women telling their stories using community radio
By Grace Githaiga

Community radio is a sector that allows communities to develop and own communication structures through generation of content, and managing the systems. Community radio stations are owned and operated by the communities they serve. They are non-profit, non-partisan, and usually non-sectarian, and operate in a participatory way, relying on volunteers for reporters, producers and newscasters. Through community radio, poor constituencies such as women, can develop their own news programs and present discussions on matters affecting their community. They share information in a language they understand. This allows them to name such topics as poverty in a language that they understand as well as articulate their social agendas and bring the same into national foras.

Good examples include Mangelete women’s radio in Kenya and Kagadi Kibale in Uganda. Theses debate issues, produce weekly programs, and develop talkback radio programs by phone or mail drop. Mangelete’s popular programs include those of reproductive health, nutrition and campaigns to stop illegal brews. For Kagadi, a popular program is on gender violence, which has developed into a rapid response unit for abused women.

Community radio programming is engendering a process, where poor constituencies isolated and marginalized are becoming energized, developing informed opinions, and becoming more adept at using information to protect themselves, to make informed decisions and to get results.

Lobbying for recognition of the community media has presented many challenges, including those of recognition, provision of communication space, and legislation bottlenecks. Despite the slow speed in growth, and the fact that any advocacy process rarely produces immediate tangible results, I have witnessed positive results of community engagement with the authorities, and can attest to increased community empowerment due to participation in local media production. The governments of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have now recognized community broadcasting in their broadcasting legislation, or are considering provisions to formally legalize community radio.

Community radios have a public duty and responsibility of framing and getting information on human rights and social injustice to the public sphere, play the surveillance role, and give enormous voice to people who would never have the opportunity to speak and seek knowledge. Also they open microphones to authentic voices and allow people to speak for themselves therefore contributing to media pluralism.