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Qtel group helps change lives of Iraqi women

DOHA: For women in Iraq, the Qtel Group company Asiacell that launched the Almas Line has created an entry point to mobile services for 550,000 new customers in the first six months.

The offering, launched in 2011 after extensive research, focuses on specific needs for female customers such as affordable rates at specific times of day, female only call-centres and discounts on services aimed at women.

With women in low- to middle-income countries 21 percent less likely than men to own a mobile phone, according to research conducted in 2010 by GSMA and the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, it is of utmost importance that the Mobile industry acts now to ensure the mobile gender gap is reduced to provide access for women across the globe to this potentially life-enhancing tool.

The Qtel Group, as part of its ongoing commitment to the GSMA mWomen Programme, hosted a workshop in Doha this month that brought together for the first time experts in the field of mWomen and representatives from across the Group.

The workshop is a preliminary session instigated by the Qtel Group, as part of a wider ongoing strategy to implement attainable initiatives for the GSMA mWomen Programme across all its markets.

Another Qtel Group company, Indosat is exploring ways in which it can help empower women in Indonesia and close the gender gap with the use of technology.

The mobile operator recently launched an offer specifically for women to meet the needs of housewives by offering affordable friends and family tariffs, a 'family-finder' application to track the geographical location of family members and an extended SIM card validity period.

The all day mWomen workshop explored ways in which the group could work together to improve the entry level to mobile ownership for women, it also looked at potential ways that mobile technologies could be harnessed to address business challenges faced by female entrepreneurs in emerging markets.

Dr Nasser Marafih, CEO, Qtel Group, said: "Hosting the workshop will accelerate the Qtel Group's efforts to implement mWomen initiatives across our footprint. With women underserved by the mobile community and with a huge potential to transform lives it is key that we understand the requirements of our female customers across each market and provide them with relevant services. We have already made great strides to deploy mWomen initiatives in our markets, including the Almas Line in Iraq and the efforts in Indonesia; we look forward to expanding on this in the coming year."

Representatives from across the Qtel Group presented mWomen initiatives that are currently being implemented within their home markets.

These included Indosat's female focused tariff and their collaboration with the non-governmental organization Mercy Corps and Asiacell's Almas Line a mobile offering targeted specifically for women that has been nominated for Best Mobile Product or Service for Women in Emerging Markets at this year's GSMA Mobile World Congress Global Mobile Awards.

© The Peninsula 2012