This volume maps the role of mobile communication in the daily lives of women around the globe, shedding light on “under-the-radar” use of mobile communication to display a nuanced understanding of social impacts that may affect the gender construction processes of women at the individual, institutional, and societal levels. A global team of authors focus on the use of mobile communication by women in the lower rungs of their respective societies, as well as those who migrate with marginalized statuses within and across the national borders, to demonstrate how “under-the-radar” use of mobile communication is deeply inscribed within diversified social, cultural, historical, and political milieus. Illuminating the social structural constraints faced by women under their dynamic negotiation of agentic mobile phone use for self-empowerment, the chapters cover women’s economic activities, health care, well-being, migration, gendered identity, and the practices of different gender roles. This comprehensive and interdisciplinary volume will be of interest to scholars and students of media and communication, new and digital media, mobile communication, gender studies, sociology, anthropology, political science, and cultural studies.

There are essential questions surrounding Africa's digitalization journey, including whether or not the continent can truly serve as the last frontier for socio-economic transformation through digital innovation. An examination of countries such as Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, and Rwanda, which are actively pursuing digitalization, may provide some answers. To evaluate the potential implications, both real and potential, that arise from this focused pursuit, a critical analysis is necessary. Scrutiny of digital infrastructure by companies like Huawei, the emergence of artificial intelligence, and the advent of quantum computing will open new pathways to understanding and establishing promising approaches to the advancement of this region. Examining the Rapid Advance of Digital Technology in Africa offers a comprehensive exploration of the transformative power of digitalization in Africa and its implications for the continent's socio-economic development. It engages with the field of science and technology studies, linking it with socio-economic impacts and transformation, to track, analyze, understand, and critique Africa's contributions to digitalization. The chapters cover a wide range of themes, including ICTs and the business environment, education, healthcare, creative industries, media, culture, tourism, agriculture, ecology, artificial intelligence, blockchain and cryptocurrency revolution, algorithmic governance, the quantum age, and urbanization. This book is a must-read for researchers, scholars, investors, and policymakers who are interested in Africa's digital transformation, as it offers valuable insights into the latest empirical and theoretical aspects shaping the continent's ongoing digitalization.

This edited book examines the impact of COVID-19 on selected areas of mobile studies, ranging from mobile public spaces to mobile workspaces. This book offers insights into how to leverage mobile devices, as well as features and communication to contain the pandemic. Specifically, it highlights the Chinese experience and lessons, and the country’s expertise in social capital management during the health crisis, governance of information flow and order, combating fake news and the infodemic, documenting the pandemic, and lessons learned from mobile health communication. It also discusses how small companies can survive the death of foreign trade during the pandemic. Looking beyond the pandemic, the book also explores the challenges and opportunities posed by the pandemic by investigating mobile learning, mobile journalism, mobile marketing and mobile workspaces. Given its scope, this book will enhance the global efforts in fighting the pandemic and contribute to the current body of knowledge on how to leverage mobile technologies to enhance public health communication during public health crises.

This edited volume investigates how refugee communities in the Middle East have adapted to secure their livelihoods within the informal economy. Focusing on Lebanon and Jordan, which between 2011 and 2020 received more refugees as a proportion of their population than any other countries in the world, this edited volume investigates the informal mechanisms that Syrian refugees have adopted to fit into the informal economies of Lebanon and Jordan in the face of significant challenges and barriers. The volume investigates how legality, temporality, connectedness, gender, and geography, among other factors, have influenced the emergence of refugee communities’ informal adaptive mechanisms. Drawing on in-depth, original research among Syrian refugee tribal communities, agricultural workers, female-headed households, and micro-entrepreneurs, the volume provides tangible policy and practice recommendations to help to improve the situation of refugees and vulnerable populations that are employed in the informal economy. Highlighting the resilience and agency demonstrated by refugees, this edited volume’s original community-based analysis will be of interest to students, researchers, and professionals from across Middle East studies, refugee studies, informal labor economics, and development studies.

The rapidly evolving nature of emerging technologies, and the transformative and disruptive tendencies offered by these are reshaping professional activities, operations and functions as well as value creation.

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