A roundtable conference titled “Women’s Digital Transformation: A Gateway to Sustainable Development, was held on May 5 at the University of Dhaka.
Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatun Nessa Centre for Gender and Development Studies in co-ordination with the Daily Ittefaq organized the roundtable at the Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban of the university .
Zunaid Ahmed Polok, Minister of State for the Department of Information and Communication Technology attended the event as the chief guest, while Prof. Dr. A S M Maksud Kamal, Vice Chancellor of the University of Dhaka was the special guest.
Nazma Mobarek, Secretary of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Prof. Dr. Tania Haque, Director of Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatun Nessa Centre for Gender and Development Studies at the University of Dhaka, Prof. Dr. Lafifa Jamal of the Department of Robotics and Mechatronics Engineering, Prof. Dr. Sadik Hasan of the Department of Public Administration, Zara Zabeen Mahbub, Member of Parliament, Munir Hasan. Chief Coordinator of Digital Transformation and Youth Activities at the Daily Prothom Alo, Nasima Akhter Nisha of the Women and E-Commerce Trust and others, including students, among others, were present at the conference. .
The discussion was rich with insights from the participants. Dr. Tania Haque, the event host, stimulated the discussion by asking the speakers about the challenges women face in their fields and strategies to overcome them. The Vice Chancellor emphasized that women's empowerment is unattainable without economic independence and self-reliance. He assured the attendees that he would use the insights from the conference to collaborate with the Skill Development Authority, creating practical applications for these ideas.
Zunaid Ahmed Polok, the state minister for ICT ,stated it is essential to break away from stereotypical thinking; everyone, regardless of gender, must work towards women's empowerment.
Dr. Lafifa Jamal from the Department of Robotics and Mechatronics at the University of Dhaka presented some encouraging statistics on women's education. However, she expressed concern that, despite rising education rates, the number of women in the workforce remains low. She highlighted the digital literacy gap between men and women and noted that 73 percent of women face online harassment. Dr. Jamal emphasized that women need to become self-reliant through technology to contribute effectively to the country's economy
Munir Hasan, Chief Coordinator of Digital Transformation and Youth Activities at the Daily Prothom Alo, noted that women face adverse comments rather than support on social media. He emphasized the need for targeted, small-scale solutions and increased accountability, including more girls-only activities.
Nasima Akhter Nisha from the Women and E-Commerce Trust echoed concerns about online harassment and the lack of communication between Facebook officials and Bangladeshi representatives. She stressed the importance of awareness campaigns to address online harassment.
Zara Zabeen Mahbub, MP, stated that affirmative action must be taken and that the change must start at a family level by establishing the mentality that boys and girls are equal.
Prof. Dr. Sajjad Hossain from the Department of Public Administration discussed the challenges of making the digitalization process more women-friendly. The conference featured many valuable insights and experiences from attendees.
Both the Vice Chancellor and Minister Zunaid Ahmed Polok promised to consider these contributions and apply them, making the conference highly productive.
In the end, Dr Tania Haque handed over crests to the guests.
