Independent Advanced
Navigates digital tools independently across contexts, including more complex and evolving systems.
Pathways Segment
Of Reproductive Age Women
10%- Largely Basic Smartphone
How do they use their phones?
Women use their phones to stay connected, manage financial transactions, consume entertainment, express themselves, and access information for everyday needs. Patterns of use are shaped by relevance, familiarity, and the constraints of their social and material contexts.
Mobile Ownership (DHS-8 2024)
99%Smartphone Ownership
43%Uses Mobile for Financial Transactions
38%
Reach and Connection
Uses WhatsApp for personal as well as business communication. Connects with customers to coordinate orders and shares photos of products over WhatsApp.
Entertainment and Stress Relief
Listens to music and watches videos, including religious sermons, across online and offline channels. Engagement on social media is largely passive, through browsing and viewing rather than active interaction.
Learning and Growth
Uses WhatsApp groups to learn cooking and other skills aligned with expected gender roles. Learning is mostly passive, encounters content through group posts rather than actively searching for it.
Transactions and Financial Security
Uses OPAY for basic transactions like sending and receiving money. Opening or operating the account requires the husband’s permission.
Self Promotion and Expression
May post online to promote business. Sends product photos to customers over WhatsApp. Posting does not extend to personal expression, reflecting normative caution.
How do they get access to their phones?
Access to phones is often mediated through family and social networks, with devices acquired, shared, or supported through these relationships. Patterns of ownership, control, and continuity vary across geographies and reflect broader gendered and economic conditions.
Is in the Top 40% by Household Wealth Nationally
47%Partner Works in a Professional or Managerial Role
23%Has Year Long Employment or Livelihood Activity
56%
Access to Device and Consumables
May have had limited early phone access, possiby by borrowing from parents or siblings. Parents may gift phones for key educational milestones. Access to devices may improve after marriage.
May own a basic smartphone. Can borrow phones to meet a specific need like that of a better camera, bigger screen for watching films etc, from family and close friends.
Husbands buy data and airtime and take the device to and from charging centers. At times, adult children may also do these tasks.
How do they learn how to use their phones?
Women build digital capability over time through a combination of early exposure, literacy, and support from others. Facilitators, such as family members, peers, or intermediaries often play a role in shaping how skills are developed and how confidence is built.
Can Read Full Sentences
100%Cannot Read at All
0%Has Secondary and Above Education
79%
Base Capabilities
Prior digital exposure as well as literacy, supports her ability to follow on-screen prompts and try out apps like Facebook and WhatsApp. Can independently acquire and distribute media content.
Learning Style
Curious and keen to learn through trial and error; seeks help when needed and uses audiovisual content. Learns well through demonstration, without needing repeated guidance.
Learning Needs
Likely needs help with complex tasks, like setting up mobile banking or changing language settings.
Facilitators
Husbands and family members remain primary facilitators but they are also likely to have access to other capable facilitators who can help with account set up, and navigating social media and WhatsApp.
What are the challenges they navigate?
Women navigate interruptions in access, limitations in resources, and a range of digital risks. Their use of phones is shaped by social expectations and relationship dynamics, which influence when, how, and how freely they are able to stay connected.
Has Internalised Domestic Violence
20%Participates in Household Decision Making
46%Household has Electricity
55%
Disruptions caused by Financial Shocks, Damage, Degradation and Loss
When disruptions occur, they often lead to a decline in quality of use (reducing the range, frequency or independent use). Borrowing phones may mitigate the worst effects but reduces overall digital engagement.
Managing Recurring Costs (data, airtime etc.)
Managing recurring costs such as data and airtime is a frequent source of discontinuity. Data gaps are felt when WhatsApp access is disrupted, and reliance on her husband to purchase data can prolong interruptions.
Charging Cycles
Charging can cause short-term but significant disruption, affecting wider digital use. While some women may have more reliable access to power at home, those who do not must closely monitor battery life.
Norms, Control and Coercion
Earlier in life, a less restrictive environment may have enabled wider digital use. After marriage, stricter norms and scrutiny from her husband limit acceptable use. Given her prior exposure and capability, this may lead to a significant and potentially long-term halt to expanding beyond current use.
Perception of Risk
Has likely heard about digital threats through her network. May be more exposed to digital safety and security threats and aware of others who have experienced these issues.
Response to Digital Risk
Likely aware of basic steps to mitigate risks, often through self-restriction or usage limits enforced by her husband.