Together with over 100 volunteers, Sweden, Canada and civil society are taking action to make the internet more gender equal.

Date: Sunday, 20 March 2022

“Finally, the real contributions of Jordanian women are more visible online.”

Participants at the opening of Wiki Gap, organized by the Swedish and Canadian Embassies, and supported by UN Women to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment through edit-a-thons on Wikipedia. Photo credit: UN Women/Ye Ji Lee — Participants at the opening of Wiki Gap, organized by the Swedish and Canadian Embassies, and supported by UN Women to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment through edit-a-thons on Wikipedia.
Photo credit: UN Women/Ye Ji Lee

#WikiGap is a Swedish initiative that gathers people around the world to add more content to Wikipedia about notable women. “Society is not an equal playing field and as it turns out, neither is the online space. Women’s contributions have been continuously written out of history and I am so proud that we are now taking concrete action to change that,” comments Her Excellency Ms. Alexandra Rydmark, Ambassador of Sweden to Jordan.

So far, #WikiGap has resulted in over 50,000 edited articles that have reached more than 100 million views. Thanks to #WikiGap, more women and their achievements are being made visible online. “Credit to Sweden for drawing on crowd-sourcing to increase the presence of women in Wikipedia. By making women’s accomplishments more visible online, we hope to inspire younger women to go after their dreams. Canada is proud to partner with Sweden, UN Women, and the incredible Jordanian organizations on this important initiative.” noted Her Excellency, Donica Pottie, Ambassador of Canada to Jordan

Ms. Suzan Qaddumi, Executive Manager at Khawarizmi University Technical College, H.E. Ms. Donica Pottie, Ambassador of Canada to Jordan, H.E. Ms. Alexandra Rydmark, Ambassador of Sweden to Jordan, Ms. Aisha Mukhtar, Deputy Country Representative at UN Women Jordan, and participants at the closing of Wiki Gap 2022. Photo: UN Women/ Ye Ji Lee

The campaign is returning to Jordan for the fifth year in a row and has gathered over 100 volunteers, including former Minister of Planning, Her Excellency Ms. Mary Kawar. “We must all pull our weight for gender equality,” she commented, “and turn every stone until women have the same opportunities and resources as men. This is why I am proud to make a contribution to the Wikigap campaign. Finally, the real contributions of Jordanian women are more visible online.”

"The gender gap in digital space is too wide and by enhancing women’s online representation, WikiGap is ensuring that women’s voices and histories are documented and celebrated. As more women and their contributions get featured on Wikipedia, we get a step closer to making the internet more gender-equal." – said Ms. Aisha Mukhtar, UN Women Jordan Deputy Representative.

Partners in WikiGap Jordan: The Embassy of Sweden, the Embassy of Canada, UN WomenJordan, the HeforShe Arabic Movement, Wikimedia Levant, Jordan Open Source Association, Khawarizmi University Technical College, American Centre of Research.

For more information please contact:

Kristin Hagegård, Embassy of Sweden

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Tel: 079 700 61 04