Gender gap in terms of mobile broadband subscribers increasing – Why?

Recently, the national telecom regulator, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), released its annual report, consisting of various reports and metrics. One of the metrics showed that the gender gap is increasing in terms of mobile broadband subscribers. You can see the metrics in the below-mentioned image. Now, the question pops up in our minds as to why this gap is increasing, even though we see that females are using mobile phones in almost every corner of the country.

After research, we found out that the reason behind the increase in the gender gap is because of one major reason, which is the cultural context. Overall, Pakistan is a conservative country, with people considering the females of their family as their dignity. Therefore, in most households, the male members usually purchase the SIM cards and register them in their names, while those SIMs are being used by the females. Therefore, the gender gap has kept on increasing, as evident in the recent PTA report.

While cultural dynamics, particularly the conservative ethos in Pakistan, contribute significantly to the widening gap, acknowledging additional factors such as economic constraints, perceived utility, and device ownership is essential. Crafting a meaningful solution requires collaborative efforts involving government initiatives, private-sector engagement, and community-driven programs

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