The importance of gender balance for the realization of a more inclusive digital economy.
Currently only 7.4% of Fortune Global 500 CEOs are female.
This was underlined by Catherine Chen, Senior Vice President and Director of the Board of Huawei, who spoke today at the Web Summit 2020, underlining how women, in the world of technology, still represent a minority, despite the commitment of many multinationals in wanting to increase female presence in their wards.
"Gender equality does not mean reaching a point where women and men share the same mentality and behavior - said Chen - It is instead about achieving equal opportunities and rights, which can only be guaranteed by a more inclusive and healthy society" .
To date, only half of women in the world are part of the workforce and about 20-30% of these are included in the Information and Communication Technology landscape.
A paltry 7.4% of the CEOs of the top 500 companies globally, as per the Fortune Global 550 list, are women.
"In the digital age, we need not only more women but more women leaders," reiterated the vice president.
In the perspective of Catherine Chen, representative of everything Huawei is doing for inclusion in the segment of STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), there are three key factors that will allow us to bring more women into companies who deal with technology.
Firstly, political support is needed, targeting the objectives outlined in the "EU Strategy on Gender Equality 2020-2025", an initiative that demonstrates how "Europe has been a pioneer in promoting equality. But we must not stop now".
Then, it is women themselves who should reject the idea that the tech industry is too complex for them.
"But to do this, a third step is needed - he concluded - digital training, which is essential to empower women. This will offer them more opportunities, helping them to learn the basic skills they need to be competitive in the digital economy".