Action needed on digital gender gap

Only 34 per cent of science, technology, engineering and mathematics graduates and just 17 per cent of specialist ICT workers in the EU are women, according to data collated by the European Commission.

The Commission’s Women in Digital Scoreboard, which published its latest figures on 11 June, ranks member states based on the participation of women in their digital economies. The scoring system is based on 13 indicators and shows a strong correlation between member states’ general digital competitiveness and the involvement of women in their digital economies.

Taking the EU as a whole, there is a gender gap in all of the 13 indicators, with the largest gap coming in specialist ICT skills and employment. The data show that women working as ICT specialists earn on average 19 per cent less than their male colleagues.