Online Platforms Failing to Give Equal Opportunities to African Women

The gig economy in Africa has grown significantly as a result of the COVID pandemic, offering employment for those shut out from formal and even informal opportunities. But women are being prevented from taking full advantage of these opportunities because of the ways in which long-standing gender disparities are manifesting themselves in digital platforms, according to a new project by Caribou Digital. The digital economy research and advisory firm has collected the experiences of people who earn their living on digital platforms to understand how the COVID pandemic shaped their experience. The project forms part of their ongoing research, supported by the Mastercard Foundation, into “platform livelihood.”