Freja Forum, Skopje

The 13th Freja Forum took place in Skopje. As a Forum Freja builds capacity to strengthen social structures, democracy and equal opportunities through the development of non-profit organizations in Western Balkan, Turkey, Sweden and other EU countries. The Forum discussed the current situation with the focus of a fair digitalization. Non-profit organizations and other actors must be better prepared and increase the knowledge of how a fair digital future can be created. Freja Forum has the aim of developing efficient processes in the non-profit sector to increase the competence and be strong and constructive players in the digital society.
Dr. Risteska presented the CRPM research on Girls in ICT. The phenomenon is deeply rooted in the society and starts from an early age so that young girls are being raised as to seek security, find a job preferably in a “female” occupation (health, social work, education, or public administration) and not to “dream big”. The education system and society in general transfers from generation to generation the traditional divide of labour and care within the household, without any progress on this matter.
This reflects not just on the horizontal market segregation based on gender but also vertical (within sectors) “whereby women are usually employed to execute the lower level jobs and the higher, better-paid and senior positions are almost exclusively filled by men. Jobs like sales assistants, technicians, professionals and clerks are mostly delegated to women” (Ibid).