## 5 Barriers to Internet Access for Women in Developing Countries
### Social Norms Favouring Men  
Technologies are often considered to be within the purview of men and gender norms about men's control of technology, information and knowledge limit women's opportunity to learn, use and benefit from technology [20]. More than two-thirds of the world's population still lack access to the Internet. Given that women enjoy fewer educational and career opportunities globally and, in some places, they face having to endure restrictive gender norms, it is not surprising that most of them are women [26]. As a result, conservative gender roles become even more entrenched due to a lack of exposure to alternative perspectives and women become increasingly marginalised as social connections are increasingly fostered and maintained online [26]. Even in countries where access is no longer an issue, \"inequalities in actual use can hamper women's opportunities on both economic and social fronts. Access is necessary, but not sufficient, to close the gender digital divide\" [14] (p. 36). Given the rapid proliferation of ICTs, most individuals are likely to have access; however, high rates of access do not imply high rates of usage and, as such, \"the discourse on the digital divide has expanded to include a consideration of other factors that generate digital inequality\" [15]. [PERSON] and [PERSON] [9] found that differences in IT usage along demographic and socioeconomic dimensions reflect the extent of differences in other areas of the economy and society. At the individual level \"differentiated spread of the Internet (may) lead to increasing inequalities, befitting those who are already in advantageous positions and denying access to better resources for the underprivileged\" [29] (pp. 826-827). That is, having Internet access does not necessarily imply use and [PERSON] _et al._[2],among others, advocate the need to examine access and use separately so as to distinguish between opportunity and choice. \"Use presumes access but not vice versa\" [9] (p. 1137). Even in the developed nations that are the subject of this study, non-users are disproportionately female, older, less educated and poor, and similar patterns have been observed in developing nations. In terms of women non-users, we need to ask whether this is a choice that is freely made without constraints or whether this choice is influenced by larger social factors. Someone who has not completed high school, for example, may not be aware of what information is available online or how to navigate it. Simply giving such a person a computer and/or Internet access would not guarantee use and the results of this study certainly bear out this contention: computer ownership and use was positively associated with education in all five countries. Moreover, women are significantly less likely to use a computer at home, given ownership, which suggests that living in a household where a computer is available does not necessarily mean that women will use it; access does not translate to use in many cases. There is further evidence that perceived benefit is another factor that influences women's use of ICTs in developing countries. Regardless of whether or not Internet access is available, women are less likely to use ICTs if they perceive the benefits of doing so to be low. However, [PERSON] and [PERSON] [9] (p. 1141) note that \"both actual and perceived benefits of IT use may be related to larger social forces that are tied in with inequality at the macroeconomic and societal level\". [PERSON] _et al._[17] (p. 22) similarly assert that \"social and cultural factors limit women's access to shared ICT facilities, such as tele-centres, which tend to become meeting places for young men, and hence deter women's absorption and adoption of ICTs to access information and knowledge\". Furthermore, common access points such as tele-centres are often not open for women and, in several cultures, women's use of such facilities and their interaction with men in public locations is frowned upon [17].