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Much more needs to be done to ensure knowledge society taps into the capabilities of as many women as possible argue the authors from WIGSAT stating that improving the quality life for women improve their communities vastly.

Knowledge society is about the development and utilization of capabilities to identify, produce, process, transform, disseminate and use information to build and apply knowledge for human development (UNESCO 2005).  

While built on the base of the information society, the knowledge society places emphasis on human capabilities over technology and comprises a larger system of knowledge access, production and exchange among professional and technical workers, researchers and the private sector. With regard to information and communication technology (ICT), knowledge society extend its view to the ability of a country to use and benefit economically and socially and takes into account the wider range of skills and capabilities required for the transition.

A knowledge divide separates countries with good education systems, adequate research facilities, a base of knowledge producers in a viable knowledge community and high development potential from those countries that lag behind in these areas and which can in turn can be further disadvantaged by a brain drain and lower rates of economic growth. At the same time, the global economy is increasingly based on scientific and technological knowledge and the use of science, technology, innovation (STI) and knowledge for economic competitiveness and development.

In policy literature, knowledge is often seen primarily in relation to its economic functions, with a focus on the knowledge economy, knowledge workers and knowledge management. Our perspective is that knowledge is not only for economic growth but its foremost use should be to empower and develop all sectors of society, in particular its women, to understand, use and design technologies and knowledge for poverty reduction, economic growth, increased quality of life and to promote social development. A socially inclusive knowledge society empowers all members of society to create, receive, share and use information and knowledge for their economic, social, cultural and political development.

Why do we want women to participate in the knowledge society?

Full integration of women into a socially inclusive knowledge society can only be achieved if a society supports the equality and empowerment of all. Gender equality and empowerment necessarily include women’s ability to make decisions, exercise control and choice so as to affect events and circumstances around them, either in the pursuit of scientific and technological design and innovation, or in using science and technology to advance their goals. The United Nations definition of "women's empowerment" includes a recognition that women are disadvantaged in access to education and resources and that "the empowerment and autonomy of women and the improvement of their political, social, economic and health status is both a highly important end in itself and necessary for the achievement of sustainable human development." Women’s empowerment is seen as having five elements: a sense of self-worth, the right to have and to determine choices, the right to have access to opportunities and resources, the right to have the power to control their own lives both within and outside the home and the ability to influence the direction of social change in order to create a more just social and economic order, nationally and internationally (United Nations Population Information Network n.d.).

Promoting and encouraging women's equitable participation in the knowledge society will produce a range of benefits for both social and economic development:

• Women represent an under-tapped resource of human capacity for the development of a national knowledge society. More women in education and the labour force increase the pool of productive human resources and enhance a nation’s competitiveness, resulting in increased creativity, expertise and competitiveness in both the technology sector and the knowledge society and  allowing a country to arrive more quickly at a critical mass of knowledge and technology professionals (InterAcademy Council 2004).
• Increasing both women's education and women’s employment contributes to national economic growth, at the same time that gender gaps in both education and employment harm a country’s economic performance (Klasen and Lamanna 2007).
• Increasing women's representation in the science, engineering and technology (SET) and knowledge-based labour force especially increases the competitiveness of businesses and advances the development of national innovation and knowledge systems.

From a rights perspective, ensuring that women benefit equitably from efforts to develop human capacity is at the core of the knowledge society. Gender equality refers to equal access for both women and men to the productive use of resources and equal opportunities to benefit from development.
Women are less prone to corruption and nepotism than men; increasing the number of women in the workforce is likely to improve business and government governance, with positive impact on economic performance characteristics that are of value in learning societies (Swamy et al. 2001).

Women are active agents in development

Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen emphasizes the centrality of women in the knowledge society in placing emphasis on the agency and capabilities of women. He sees women’s leadership as a crucial element in the development process and notes that the expansion of women's capabilities not only enhances women's own freedom and well-being, but also has many other beneficial effects on the lives of all (Sen 1999). Supporting women as active agents in development will enable them to improve their incomes, health and food production – benefiting their families and communities overall. Science and technology (S&T) can be an important tool for women in this regard (Hafkin and Huyer 2006, Gender Working Group 1995).

The Gender Advisory Board (CSTD) and UNESCO support this view, arguing that women are actors in – as well as targets of – development. Women need S&T to serve their development needs and should actively participate in the setting of priorities for how S&T is designed and used to address these needs (UNESCO 2007).

A number of arguments for women’s participation in the knowledge society centre on social welfare aspects – the increase of the general good to society. Increases in women’s education has social impacts, which in turn positively affect economic growth. Substantial research shows that promoting female education reduces fertility and child mortality levels and promotes the education of the next generation, each of which in itself has a positive impact on economic growth (World Bank 2001). Increased female employment and earnings increases their bargaining power in the home (World Bank 2001, Sen 1990). This not only benefits women but their greater bargaining power can have a range of growth-enhancing effects including higher savings rates (as men and women differ in their savings behaviour), more productive investments and use and repayment of credit and higher investments in health and education of their children, thus promoting human capital of the next generation and therefore economic growth (World Bank 2001). Women’s increased access to and use of ICTs has also been shown to have numerous positive effects not only on women themselves but on society as a whole. Observed effects include increased income and economic empowerment, reduction in discrimination, better social standing and more positive media images, higher status and a greater role in decision-making in the household and society, improved self-esteem, expanded mobility and easier access to education (Huyer and Carr 2002, World Bank 1999, Huyer and Mitter 2003, Hafkin and Huyer 2006).