Ending the Gender Digital Divide in Myanmar: A Problem-Driven Political Economy Assessment Sheila Scott, Center for Applied Learning and Impact, IREX with Swathi Balasubramanian and Amber Ehrke ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors wish to thank the many organizations and individuals without whom this research would not have come to fruition. The staff of IREX’s Beyond Access program first noted the negative impact of the gender gap on women’s and girls’ access to information and training at public libraries throughout Myanmar. Field researchers Swathi Balasubramian and Amber Ehrke provided countless helpful insights into research design, resources and early drafts. IREX internal reviewers Sarah Bever, Ari Katz, Stephanie Lake and Samhir Vasdev ensured the analysis was well grounded in the global context of ICT4D and international education. External reviewers Rick Nuccio, Matt Baker and Charles Cadwell shared thoughtful questions that clarified the research lines of inquiry at helpful moments. In Myanmar, the Myanmar Book and Preservation Fund has been a steady companion on the journey towards digital inclusion. We are deeply grateful for the many participants of focus group discussions and key informants who shared their experience with technology and insights on the digital divide today. And a special thanks are extended to Cho Chan Myei Oo for her keen understanding and excellent interpretation skills. IREX Center for Applied Learning and Impact 1275 K Street, NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20005 © 2017 IREX. All rights reserved. For any commercial reproduction, please obtain permission from [email protected]. Table of Contents List of Acronyms . 2 Executive Summary . 3 Global Context ...........................................................3 Recommendations .......................................................5 Introduction . 11 Key Findings. .12 Why a PEA? .............................................................13 Methodology and Limitations ............................................15 Structure of the Report ..................................................17 GLOBAL CONTEXT: Gender, ICTs, and Development . .18 The Global Gender Digital Divide .........................................19 Myanmar’s Evolving Information Society ..................................21 Special Focus on Education ..............................................24 FOUNDATIONAL FACTORS: System Legitimacy . .25 People and Place .......................................................26 Gender and Power ......................................................29 The Technology Ecosystem ..............................................36 The Legal Environment ..................................................42 RULES OF THE GAME: Institutions and Norms . .46 National and Regional Governance Institutions ............................47 Patronage Networks and Other Incentives .................................58 Educational Institutions .................................................61 Private Sector Interests ..................................................69 Civil Society ............................................................72 HERE AND NOW: Current Players and Dynamics . .75 Military Leaders & Politicians .............................................77 Oligarchs & Entrepreneurs ...............................................81 Educators and Students .................................................83 Activists ................................................................85 Consumers .............................................................85 RECOMMENDATIONS . 86 Conclusion . .91 Annex A: Stakeholder Questionnaire . .93 Annex B: List of Consultations . 96 Annex C: Key GDD-Related Institutions and Agencies . 97 Annex D: Recommended Resources . 10. 1 Annex E: Map of Education Projects, by Township . 10. 2 Annex F: Bibliography . 10. 3 Ending the Gender Digital Divide in Myanmar: A Problem-Driven Political Economy Assessment | 1 List of Acronyms 2G Second-generation digital technology A4AI Alliance for Affordable Internet ADB Asian Development Bank ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations CEDAW Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women CSO Civil society organization DfID Department for International Development, Government of Great Britain DFAT Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Government of Australia GAD General Administration Department, Myanmar Ministry of Home Affairs GoM Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar GONGO Government-organized [quasi] non-governmental organization ICT Information and communication technology ICT4D ICTs for Development INGO international non-governmental organization MBAPF Myanmar Book and Preservation Foundation MCIT Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (dissolved 2016) MCRB Myanmar Center for Responsible Business MIDO Myanmar ICT Development Organization MoE Ministry of Education MoTC Ministry of Transportation and Communications (established 2016) MPT Myanmar Post and Telecommunications NESP National Education Strategic Plan NLD National League for Democracy NSPAW National Strategic Plan for the Advancement of Women PEA Political economy analysis SGBV Sexual and gender-based violence SMS Short message service STEM Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics TASCHA Technology and Social Change Group, University of Washington TVET Technical and vocational education and training UN United Nations UNDP United Nations Development Program UNESCO United Nations Education, Social and Cultural Organization USAID United States Agency for International Development VAW Violence against women and girls WASH Water, sanitation, and hygiene Ending the Gender Digital Divide in Myanmar: A Problem-Driven Political Economy Assessment | 2 Executive Summary Executive Summary Ensuring that women and girls engage in the digital world is fundamental to Myanmar’s democratic and economic growth. Yet women are 28% less likely IREX INSIGHT than men to own a mobile phone, the primary means of internet access in the Digital inclusion is fundamental country, and experience related disparities in digital skills and use. To better to Myanmar’s democratic and understand this gap, IREX conducted a first-of-its-kind political economy analysis economic growth—yet the extent of Myanmar’s gender digital divide. The report offers a nuanced view of who is to which women and girls are excluded and how, with tailored, practical recommendations to narrow the divide. currently excluded is neither fully acknowledged nor appreciated Myanmar is currently undergoing a technological revolution concurrent with systemic as a brake on development. political and economic change. As the country transitions to a democratic, market-based economy, there has been a great deal of optimism about the potential for information and communication technology (ICT)1 to optimize the positive impact of people-centered reforms in Myanmar. Yet the nearly unprecedented pace of adoption of mobile ICT devices2 is uneven across gender, ethnic, geographic, and socioeconomic lines, which begs the question: what does this sea change in interconnectedness mean for Myanmar’s women and girls, particularly those belonging to marginalized groups? This research report examines the extent to which nuanced evidence exists for gender- based differences in ICT access, digital skills, and benefits derived from ICTs among the diverse population of Myanmar and, in turn, gauges stakeholder awareness of how such differences may exacerbate existing disparities in development outcomes such as health, employment, and education.3 Applying a political economy analysis (PEA) through a gender lens, the research reveals how deeply ingrained gender-based power dynamics, roles, and expectations influence individual differences noted in ownership, usage, and benefits as well as institutional incentives—or lack thereof—to close the gap. Global Context There is a direct correlation between systemic uptake of information and communication technologies (referred to as “networked readiness”) and GDP,4 and the United Nations and “4G mobile telephone other institutions have clearly articulated a link between ICTs and all seventeen of the UN services are being rolled Sustainable Development goals.5 While ICTs in general and internet access in particular are out across [Myanmar] not a panacea, they are a critical component of sustainable and equitable economic and at a pace unmatched social development. in the rest of the world. This phenomenon alone 1 ICTs consist of hardware, software, networks, and media for collection, storage, processing, transmission, could contribute more to a and presentation of information (voice, data, text, images). See World Bank Group, ICTs and MDGs: A World Bank successful transition than Group Perspective, December 2003. 2 Mobile phones are the most widely available form of access to ICTs in Myanmar. Household mobile phone any other single policy ownership jumped from 2 percent in 2012 (ITU) to 83 percent in 2016, while those who had never used a reform.” phone decreased from 31 percent in 2015 to 9 percent in 2016. Helani Galpaya, Ayesha Zainudeen, Suthaharan Perumpalam, Gayani Hurulle, Htaike Htaike Aung, and Phyu Phyu Thi, “Mobile Phones, Internet, Information and —Lex Rieffel, “Aung San Suu Kyi’s Knowledge: Myanmar,” LIRNEasia, January 2, 2017. 3 The Global Libraries program of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation data dashboard has extensive New Government,” Brookings impact data related to public-access