The impact of the digital revolution on women in physics in Kenya

In this study, we investigate the impact of the digital revolution on women in physics in Kenya and analyze how the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic affected their lives. We cover the changes with regard to online research; learning; remote access to resources, data, and information; and the technological initiatives that have taken place in Kenya to engage and support Kenyan women physicists. Previous country papers have focused on the history of women physicists in Kenya, with an emphasis on demographics, challenges faced by the women and some of the initiatives implemented to address these challenges. These challenges ranged from social-cultural stigma, cultural prejudices, inequities and the demands of balancing family and work. To build on the previous research, we conducted an online survey and segregated the data by gender to determine whether the digital revolution has had gender-specific impacts. We also sought to gauge the effect that the pandemic has had on various services and resources in Kenya and to identify what had to be done differently, and we make recommendations going forward.