Digital transformation and gender equality
How can the digital transformation be harnessed for the benefit of everyone? The second OECD Forum on Gender Equality, held in Paris on 8 and 9 July 2026, explores how artificial intelligence, data and digital tools can advance equality rather than reinforce existing forms of discrimination. Switzerland is co-charing the Forum for the second time.
Switzerland has reaffirmed that equality must remain a fundamental value and strategic priority within the OECD, including in its work on digital issues. It has called for the continuation of the Working Party on Gender Mainstreaming and Governance (GMG), for the improvement of disaggregated and intersectional data, and opposes any erosion of the concept of gender equality itself. Switzerland has also highlighted the responsibility of the business sector, emphasising that, in the face of an ageing population and growing labour needs, fully harnessing women's potential is as much an economic imperative as it is a matter of equity.
Promoting autonomy, preventing discrimination
Inequalities are evident right from the outset when it comes to access to technology and digital skills. Globally, women are 15 per cent less likely than men to use mobile internet. In OECD countries, only 1.5 per cent of 15-year-old girls envisage a career in ICT, compared with nearly 10 per cent of boys. Women also remain under-represented in digital entrepreneurship: in the EU, they account for only 18 per cent of self-employed people in this sector, compared with 34 per cent in other sectors.
In light of these disparities, this second edition of the Forum examines how digital technologies, artificial intelligence and data can empower women and girls, notably by facilitating access to services and entrepreneurship. It also looks at the conditions necessary for their full participation in the digital transformation, particularly access to skills, training, leadership roles and funding.
The Forum also highlights the risks of discrimination associated with digital technologies, particularly when artificial intelligence systems are based on biased data and perpetuate gender stereotypes. It pays particular attention to online safety and digital violence targeting women and girls. Around one in two women worldwide report having experienced some form of technology-enabled gender-based violence. In the session dedicated to tackling technology-facilitated violence, the Public Discourse Foundation – supported by the Federal Office for Gender Equality (FOGE) – presented its work on prevention and support for women who are victims of online violence.
Work carried out in Switzerland
As part of the action plan for the Gender Equality Strategy 2030, a study on the digital transformation and gender equality in Switzerland was commissioned by the Federal Chancellery, in collaboration with the FOGE. Published in early July, the study provides an initial assessment of the situation in Switzerland in this area, identifies the main challenges and suggests possible courses of action. Switzerland has also actively contributed to the Council of Europe’s work on artificial intelligence, equality and non-discrimination, in particular to the drafting of a recommendation on equality and artificial intelligence. This work highlights, in particular, the importance of representative data, transparent systems, oversight mechanisms and accessible means of redress. The Federal Commission for Women’s Issues, for its part, has drawn up recommendations on protection against algorithmic discrimination.
A platform for dialogue and action
Following the Forum, a Co-Chair's Summary will be published, reflecting the collective commitments of the co-chairs and the priorities identified for the next two years. Switzerland's participation in the Forum enables it to contribute to the international dialogue and inform the work being carried out at national level to promote inclusion in the digital transformation.