The Osaka Protocol

Gender Equality for Innovative and Sustainable Digital Societies

Overview

The Osaka Protocol represents a global framework aimed at promoting gender equality in the digital age. While the full protocol is set to be released in April, the key aspects currently available highlight its comprehensive approach to addressing gender disparities in technology and innovation.

Key Objectives

The objectives of this Protocol are:

  1. To foster global initiatives that advance STEM education and skills for women and girls.
  2. To support efforts that accelerate women’s representation, leadership, and entrepreneurship in the STEM sector.
  3. To promote universal digital access and inclusion for women and girls, particularly in underserved communities.
  4. To encourage the development of ethical, unbiased, and inclusive technologies supported by appropriate policy and regulatory frameworks.

Pledge:

Committed to ongoing improvements towards the above objectives, the Parties to this Protocol pledge to: 

  1. STEM Education and Skills Drive initiatives that promote sustainable investment in digital education, skills training programs, and learning resources to ensure women and girls have equitable access to STEM education and career development opportunities.
  2. Representation, Leadership, and Entrepreneurship Foster an environment that supports organizational structures and policies accelerating women’s advancement in STEM sectors through inclusive leadership, hiring practices, mentorship programs, and dedicated support for women entrepreneurs and innovators.
  3. Digital Access and Inclusion Facilitate universal digital connectivity and inclusion by supporting sustained investment in infrastructure, affordable access, and digital services, with targeted support for underserved women and girls in rural and marginalized communities.
  4. Ethical Technology Development Encourage comprehensive frameworks for developing and deploying unbiased, gender-responsive technologies through inclusive  representation and design principles, and robust governance mechanisms.

Timeline

21 January 2025: Announcement of the Osaka Protocol at the World Economic Forum in Davos

25 April 2025: Official signing and launch of the Osaka protocol at the Women in Tech Global Summit in Osaka

Contact

For any question regarding The Osaka Protocol please contact us at top@women-in-tech.org

The Osaka Protocol

Full Text

Targets

The Parties to this Protocol target to contribute to initiatives that impact 100 million women and girls by 2030:

  1. Advance STEM Education: Support programs that expand girls’ and young women’s access to quality STEM education, cultivating interest and foundational skills from primary through higher education.
  2. Strengthen STEM Workforce Capacity: Develop comprehensive training, upskilling, and retention initiatives that foster representation, professional growth and career advancement for women.
  3. Promote Leadership Development: Create pathways for women to advance into decision-making and senior leadership positions within technology sectors and related fields.
  4. Build Innovation Capacity: Foster entrepreneurial ecosystems that provide women with the resources and funding needed to establish and scale technology ventures.
  5. Close the Gender Digital Gap: Support efforts to reduce the gender digital divide through targeted infrastructure and connectivity initiatives.

Impact Categories:

Impact will be measured quantitatively across three categories:

1. Skills and Education Impact:
Number of women and girls completing STEM education programs.
Number of participants in digital skills training initiatives.
Number of recipients of STEM scholarships and educational support.

2. Professional Impact:
Number of women placed in STEM roles.
Number of female leaders advanced in technology sectors.
Total amount of funding invested in women-led technology ventures.
Number of women participating in professional mentorship programs.

3. Access Impact:
Number of women and girls gaining new access to digital technologies.
Number of beneficiaries of infrastructure and connectivity initiatives.

Committed Actions

Commitment Levels:

  • Pioneer Level: Large-scale commitments impacting 100,000+ women and girls.
  • Partner Level: Targeted programs impacting 10,000-100,000 women and girls.
  • Participant Level: Focused initiatives impacting up to 10,000 women and girls.

Commitment Areas:

  • STEM Education and Skills: Advancing STEM education and skills development for women and girls globally
  • Representation and Leadership: Accelerating women’s representation, leadership and entrepreneurship in the STEM sector
  • Digital Access and Inclusion: Extend universal digital access and inclusion for women and girls

The Osaka Protocol Steering Committee

Ayumi Moore Aoki

Ayumi Moore Aoki

Chair

Founder and CEO
Women in Tech Global
Tech Diplomacy Forum

Rika Nakazawa

Rika Nakazawa

Co Chair

Chief Commercial Innovation
NTT

Philippe Vogeleer

Philippe Vogeleer

WITG Advisory Board

Member of the Council
Institute of Directors

Chiara Corazza

Chiara Corazza

WITG Advisory Board

President, CCC – Representative for France G20 Empower

Sandro Knopfel

Sandro Knopfel

WITG Advisory Board

Global Business Development Lead
Cardano Foundation

Sonia Jorge

Sonia Jorge

Steering Committee

Founder and Executive Director
Global Digital Inclusion Partnership (GDIP)

Shivam Kishore

Shivam Kishore

Steering Committee

Senior Advisor, Digital Transformation and Climate Investment

Lara Dewar

Lara Dewar

Steering Committee

Chief Marketing Officer
GSMA

Guillaume Defer

Guillaume Defer

Steering Committee

Headline Asia
Elena Grimme

Elena Grimme

Steering Committee

GM and Associate General Counsel, Western Europe
Microsoft

Julie Castro Abrams

Julie Castro Abrams

Steering Committee

Founder Women Who Lead

Dr Anino Emuwa

Dr Anino Emuwa

Steering Committee

Founder
100 Women @ Davos
Shogo Ishida

Shogo Ishida

Steering Committee

Co-CEO
EMURGO Middle East and Africa
Leanne Robers

Leanne Robers

Steering Committee

Co-Founder, Co-CEO
She Loves Tech

Gulser Corat

Gulser Corat

Steering Committee

Founder
NoBiasAI?

Executive Support Team

Tamuna Kvintradze

Tamuna Kvintradze

Protocol Director

Chief of Staff
Women in Tech Global
Yuki Aizawa

Yuki Aizawa

Protocol Liaison

APAC Director
Women in Tech Global

Osaka, Japan – April 25, 2025 – The Osaka Protocol, a landmark international agreement to advance gender equality for innovative and sustainable digital societies, was officially signed at the Women in Tech Global Summit in Osaka.

Join the Osaka Protocol

Annex A: Signatory Commitment Form

This Annex A constitutes the official commitment of the undersigned Party to the Osaka Protocol, as outlined in the main document. Please complete all required fields and indicate the level of commitment you are undertaking.

This field is hidden when viewing the form

Next Steps: Sync an Email Add-On

To get the most out of your form, we suggest that you sync this form with an email add-on. To learn more about your email add-on options, visit the following page (https://www.gravityforms.com/the-8-best-email-plugins-for-wordpress-in-2020/). Important: Delete this tip before you publish the form.
Your Name(Required)
Your Email Address(Required)

Commitment

Commitment Level(Required)
Please indicate the estimated number of women and girls your initiatives aim to impact by 2030:
Please select all impact areas where you would like to contribute:(Required)

Declaration

By submitting this Annex A, the undersigned expresses their intention to become a Party to the Osaka Protocol, acknowledging its values and principles, and committing to contribute to its collective mission to foster inclusive innovation and gender equity in technology. Please note that participation becomes valid only upon receiving an official confirmation email.(Required)
MM slash DD slash YYYY

Founding Parties