Acknowledging the vital role of gender empowerment in any nation’s holistic development, the “Forum on ICT and Gender: Optimizing Opportunities”, was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was hosted by the Government of Malaysia jointly with various partners including the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity (APT), Asian Pacific Women’s Information Network Center (APWINC), Commonwealth of Learning (COL), Global Knowledge Partnership (GKP), International Development Research Centre (IDRC),

International Telecommunication Union (ITU), United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). In the course of the three day event, the following four plenary sessions were held.

• setting the stage for the forum.
• access to ICTs.
• ‘soundbytes’ depicting for 4 themes.
• presentation of summary reports and recommendations.

The objectives of the conference were to increase awareness on the gender dimension of information and communication technology to provide input to the WSIS process on important aspects of ICT with implications for women, in the areas of confidence and security, education, entrepreneurship for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and, rural and disadvantaged groups.

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