Post-pandemic Asean must bridge the digital gender divide

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member-states have a unique opportunity to meaningfully address the digital gender divide through emerging coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) recovery plans. Early indications from Covid-19 research, as well as evidence from past epidemics, suggest that women, on average, are likely to suffer greater economic and social impact during the crisis caused by the pandemic.

That is for several reasons: women represent the majority of health and social workers who are in a high-risk category due to significantly higher exposure to the virus; school closures induced by lockdowns automatically translate into extra burdens for women who are most likely to be responsible for child care; and domestic violence, which affects women primarily, has increased due to lockdown measures in both developed and developing countries.