DOs and DON’Ts for Technology Use and Implementation
DOs — MACRO LEVEL
These macro level considerations relate to higher-level issues, such as a country’s physical infrastructure, government and private sector partnerships, and project design.
-
Consider availability of infrastructure for the scope of the project — multicountry, national, or subnational — and evaluate the technical infrastructure available in all geographic areas (especially rural areas) to determine if use of digital enabler(s) is feasible. Considerations include Internet connectivity, electricity availability, and digital technology, such as penetration of mobile phones and access to computers and tablets.
-
Review the technology diagnostic data from the automated data tool to assess the cost, availability, and accessibility of the digital enabler being considered for the project.
-
Do a cost-benefit analysis for using the digital enabler as compared to alternatives to identify both direct and indirect benefits from using the technology, such as digitalization of processes, increased convenience and safety related to the women’s mobility, and more efficient use of time by the women business owners as well as increased sales and profitability due to e-commerce and opportunities for firm growth and expansion to global markets.
-
Consider project design and digital tools that reflect accessible, available, and affordable technology. Even if a digital tool is available and affordable, if it offers few benefits to specific groups of women entrepreneurs, such as those in rural areas, the project design and digital tools should be reevaluated to address this.
-
Check and be mindful of WBG procurement rules, which may limit financing for some technology-enabled interventions in WBG-executed projects. For instance, WBG-executed projects may not implement or finance long-term activities or products or those requiring government maintenance. Issues around ownership, licensing, and server maintenance, among others, thus must be taken into account. WBG Procurement is available to review any specific scopes of work or ToRs.
-
Be mindful of limited counterpart knowledge of the technology needed to implement the project and resulting capacity limitations in negotiating related procurement arrangements.
-
Review similar projects, including those listed in the toolkit’s matrix, that used a digital enabler to learn from previous experiences about successes and potential pitfalls associated with adoption and use of the digital enabler.
-
Determine if the technology will facilitate a component of the project or if the technology itself is the project. The latter situation requires much more fundamental and far-reaching reforms, involving issues relating to legal and regulatory reform, data protection and privacy, cybersecurity, physical infrastructure, and Internet access interventions.
-
Ensure from the start of the project that the right partnerships are established to implement the entire project and consider potential changes in private sector and government stakeholders and champions during the project’s lifespan that could affect previously documented agreements and action plans. The project team should leverage private sector partnerships to ensure market-relevant curricula, appropriate digital tools, high-quality teaching, and data collection to increase economic empowerment and determine participant use of new digital technologies.
-
Prioritize women’s online and technological safety using digital tools, striving to prevent incidents that negatively impact or diminish gender empowerment, such as receiving unsolicited, negative messaging online or through SMS.
-
Evaluate the project in terms of the broader digital economy to determine how it can drive the digital advancement agenda forward once results are shown.
DON’Ts — MACRO LEVEL
These macro level concerns relate to higher-level issues, such as the country’s physical infrastructure, government and private sector partnerships, and project design.
-
Don’t make assumptions about the level of technology available, prevailing technological sophistication (both countrywide and locally), or the digital skills gap experienced by the women entrepreneurs themselves who are the project’s target beneficiaries. Project teams should quickly assess the technology capacity and stage of technological advancement in the country or region in which the project will be implemented. One option is to conduct a technology adoption survey or, if time and resource constraints preclude a full survey, a simplified version of one.
-
Don’t design a one-size-fits-all project. Often different regions within a country have varying social and cultural norms as well as differing levels of economic development that are reflected in the maturity of their ecosystem. For example, a generic course that disseminates improved business practices via mobile phone to all female business owners with cellular data packages from a specific cell phone service provider may appear useful at first glance; however, project teams must first consider the profile of the intended beneficiaries, their literacy and business acumen levels, and their identified needs prior to in-depth project design. This targeted assessment will help project teams to identify what course content is needed to close knowledge gaps and to present that knowledge in a format that potential beneficiaries will understand.
DOs — MICRO LEVEL
These micro level considerations relate to specific project location(s), and direct and indirect beneficiaries.
-
Design the project in consultation with the intended beneficiary community, particularly when considering the digital component. Seek input from the women who will participate in the project, especially women whom the project seeks to empower, to ensure they accept and feel greater ownership in the project.
-
Engage influential community figures, including male village leaders, elders, and family members of women entrepreneurs who would like to participate in the project, to build awareness about the project and its benefits, including the nature, purpose, and frequency of use of technology enabler(s) planned. If applicable, work with local NGOs that have already built relationships and trust with the community to facilitate this process.
-
Inquire about the social norms around the technology being considered as related to the profile of the in-tended beneficiaries. Ensure that women entrepreneur participants not only have access to the Internet but also to appropriate phones or tablets. If the necessary enabling environment is lacking, the project design should include ways to create one.
-
Perform an assessment in advance to determine whether the target population of women entrepreneurs is literate in the technology being considered. Consider ways to help beneficiaries become more psychologically comfortable and confident with using the technology enabler(s) included in the project. If the women beneficiaries are not comfortable with the technology, the project design should include specific materials to teach participants how to use the digital enabler(s).
-
Invest the time and effort needed to create and execute effective strategic communications plans to raise awareness of the project, including through digital enablers such as social media, radio, and television, and maintain the communications strategy throughout the project’s duration to ensure continued awareness of its benefits and results.
-
Prioritize staff presence in the field to troubleshoot any technology problems and to receive feedback.
-
Assess where, when, and how women entrepreneurs will access the digital enabler(s), as well as any technical assistance that may be needed; develop appropriate contingency plans. Factor into the project design any known adverse conditions, such as the coronavirus (COVID-19), and consider relevant online trainings, when possible. Highlight the benefits, including flexible schedules and hours spent learning, that the digital enabler will provide for women unable to attend classes due to mobility or health and security concerns or family commitments. If the women will access broadband Internet using computers at a business center, line up a backup facility in the event the business center is closed, or the broadband Internet isn’t working at the time of a scheduled session. If a remote training is organized, schedule an IT technician comfortable working with women to be on site to troubleshoot technology questions and facilitate use of the digital enabler(s).
-
Create an action plan in the event that not all beneficiaries possess or have access to the digital enabler(s) being considered. If not all the beneficiaries have access to the technology, such as a tablet or computer, evaluate the project budget to determine what technology can be provided, including whether the technology, such as tablets, could be lent to WSMEs for a limited time to facilitate participation.
-
Consider staggering classes to increase access to the digital enabler(s), and create relationships with community centers, universities, and the private sector to provide equipment for the duration of the training period. In addition, evaluate the medium-term impact of the project if the women entrepreneurs must return the digital tools at the end of the project.
DON’Ts — MICRO LEVEL
These micro level concerns relate to specific projects, specific location(s), and direct and indirect beneficiaries.
-
Do not include digital enablers to which less than 50 percent of the women entrepreneurs in the target group will have access, thus increasing or maintaining the digital divide between rich and poor and urban and rural populations. If this is the case, provide the digital enabler to project beneficiaries.
-
Do not include lengthy content in the digital enabler, such as an e-learning platform or SMS messaging, and do not use only one form of content, such as explanations followed by exercises. Develop content specifically aimed at women entrepreneurs, and provide different formats, such as videos from women entrepreneurs in similar projects or past cohorts and case studies that feature women business owners, in addition to written lessons. Encourage group work.
-
Do not design a one-size-fits-all project. The barriers women face in accessing and deploying technology will vary by country and even within a country. Tailoring implementation of technology enablers to the specific circumstances of the target beneficiaries will be important to ensuring their effective deployment and use.
