- A recent UN report, Gender Snapshot 2025, states that almost 28% of women's work globally may be threatened by AI, versus 21% of men's work
- It calls for action to bridge the "gender digital divide" but points out that technology may also assist in evening the playing field
A new UN report, ‘Gender Snapshot 2025’, is sounding an alarm that nearly 28 percent of women's jobs worldwide are at risk from artificial intelligence, and 21 percent of men's are.
The report invokes a need to close the "gender digital divide" urgently but also states that technology can be an equaliser.
The report threatens that unless action is taken, inequality could become entrenched in systems in the future. Closing the digital divide, it adds, would benefit 343 million girls and women, raise 30 million out of extreme poverty, ensure improved food security for 42 million individuals, and add another $1.5 trillion to the growth of the world up to 2030.
To protect against losses of women's work, the report suggests investment in women's technical and digital skills, in workers' changes between industries, and in gender-sensitive labor and social protection policies.
The United Nations has called attention to gender digital divide, stipulating that restricted access to technology and digital competencies among girls and women may impact their potential to take advantage of available opportunities in the age of artificial intelligence (AI).
It underscored the significance of enhancing access to digital learning, materials, and jobs to ensure greater engagement in the digital economy.
The UN called on governments, business, and civil society to join together to advance digital inclusion and enable fair participation in AI development and utilisation.
