On Tuesday, April 21, the Secretariat for Digital Policies of the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Cercle Tecnològic de Catalunya presented the results of the third edition of the DonaTIC Barometer . The report once again examined the presence of female technologists in the business and economic fabric of Catalonia, highlighting the gender gap in the technology sector. The presentation of the results of the third edition of the DonaTIC Barometer began with an institutional welcome by Sandra Ruiz Peralta, general director of Digital Economy and Society, and Joan Ramon Barrera, president of the Cercle Tecnològic de Catalunya. Xavier Sellarès, director of the Cercle Tecnològic de Catalunya, then shared the conclusions of the report.
Among the most relevant data, the DonaTIC Barometer indicates that the Catalan technology sector continues to move towards a greater female presence, since over the last year nearly 7,000 women have joined the field to reach nearly 58,000 professional women. However, the technology sector employs 193,500 professionals, with women representing only 30% of the total. In this sense, the figure confirms a sustained positive trend, but warns about the possibility of achieving parity in the short term. Regarding the female presence with specialized profiles, the report states that 21.80% of ICT specialists in Catalonia are women, a figure that is growing, but is still far from equilibrium. Along these lines, the DonaTIC Barometer indicates that it would take nearly fifty years to reach 50% of women in ICT professions. Likewise, the data show a generational change, since the female presence is more accentuated in initial profiles, and indicate a wage gap of 10%, becoming half of the average of the Catalan economy, which is at 19.5%. Finally, the DonaTIC Barometer highlights that the technology sector represents 8.5% of the Catalan GDP and is consolidated as one of the main engines of growth, and promotes increasing the female presence as a matter of equity, competitiveness and innovation.
A round table on artificial intelligence was then held, with the participation of Àurea Rodríguez from Eurecat, Arlet Brufau from the Observatory of Ethics in Artificial Intelligence, Eulàlia Flo from Equinix, Carme Poveda from the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Bea Abbad from the Cercle Tecnològic de Catalunya. The four female speakers shared their views on artificial intelligence, the technological revolution and the paradigm shift. Among the main reflections shared, the four female speakers agreed on how artificial intelligence is redefining the labor market and professional profiles and on the need to connect training, work and research, as well as on the fact that the lack of diversity can amplify biases and that it is necessary to guarantee an ethical, conscious and responsible technological deployment. Finally, Rosa María Rodríguez, vice president of the Cercle Tecnològic de Catalunya, closed the presentation of results.
For more information, you can consult the third edition of the DonaTIC Barometer .