The 55th Session of the Commission for the Status of Women (CSW) Report acknowledges that there is a "widespread underrepresentation of women and girls in many fields of science and technology (that) represents a loss of talent and perspectives, hinders economic development and women's economic empowerment and can contribute to the gender pay gap". Many countries around the world have taken initiatives to promote the participation of women and girls in science and technology education. In India, a few corporate companies are beginning to acknowledge the issue of the “glass ceiling” for women that puts limitations on the career-related development of working women and they are taking proactive steps to minimize them. But by and large, the role of technology as significant for gender equality and equity in the society and as a duplicator of existing gender inequalities is not recognized. Even in cases when a discussion on gender and technology occurs, it is restricted to women's entry into STEM fields in formal career opportunities and does not usually include the debates around inclusion of women's voices and needs in the design and decision making around technology. And more importantly, the impact of gender gap in technology on further marginalization of already marginalized women is not discussed.
One of FAT’s goals is to create a countrywide dialogue and consensus on the need to increase women’s participation in technology-making and equal access to technology use. While FAT’s networking and advocacy efforts have increased its solidarity with women’s groups across the country, there is still a dearth of organizations working to promote women’s participation in technology creation. Intensive collaborative efforts are needed to achieve this mission.
To this end, FAT has initiated its advocacy initiative aimed at facilitating collective actions towards bridging this gap. We started with a consultation on "Women's Movement and Technology" which was organized in Delhi and Mumbai as a part of this initiative in 2011. Since then we have been actively facilitating discussions on the topic through various forums. We have also written many reports and blog posts to increase resources.