In celebration of International Girls in ICT Day, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology joined forces with the Ministry of E-Governance to host an inspiring event aimed at empowering young women through technology. This initiative seeks to uplift and encourage female youth to explore and excel in the tech world. News Five’s Britney Gordon brings us more on this exciting event.
Every fourth Thursday in April, International Girls in ICT Day shines a spotlight on the need for more girls and women in the tech sector. For years, the Ministry of Education has been championing this cause, promoting learning, innovation, and inspiration among young women nationwide. Adriani Coleman, Director of E-Governance, shares how girls are stepping up and taking charge in the world of technology every day.
Dr. Adriani Coleman, Director, E-Governance
“Let’s be real, the world needs your energy. You’re smarts. And yes, even your TikTok honed problem-solving skills. Who else has fixed a group project crisis via WhatsApp? I don’t think the young people today use WhatsApp. They use Discord or Teams, or maybe you’re chatting on ROBLOX or Minecraft, who knows? Nowadays, just a side note, at the Ministry of E Governance, fifty three percent of our team are women. Woo. Yes. Yes. That’s amazing Right? So we already have women in the field. I feel you need to know that because it shows that when we lead like a 501 girl, we become women who lead as well.”
The recent celebration of International Girls in ICT Day was packed with engaging activities and interactive sessions, including decryption and computer programming, all aimed at fostering learning, innovation, and inspiration. Stephanie Sylvester, co-founder of the classroom AI tool Avatar Buddy, captivated the audience with her insights on the skills needed to thrive in the AI industry and lead with confidence like a true 501 girl.
Stephanie Sylvestre, Co-founder, Avatar Buddy
“We have resiliency, we have resourcefulness, and we have creativity. So when we talk about resilience, it means not giving up, right? When you make a mistake, when you write the piece of code, when the software blows up on you, when you’re trying to put the electronics together and it just doesn’t come on, the light doesn’t come on. You followed all the instructions and you’re like, why doesn’t this work? This is not time for you to give up. This is a time for you to take a few deep breaths, look around, maybe go get some help, maybe just walk around and then come back and do it again. And if I did not have resilience, I wouldn’t be standing up here today because in 2016, when I started my company, everybody. I mean, everybody told me I was absolutely insane, not possible. And I kept on going and going until I met the first friend that said, okay, Stephanie, this is like mind blowing. The reason why people are saying it’s not possible is because you’re blowing up their mind.”
Namrita Balani, Director, Science & Technology
“ You’re not too young, you’re not too new. You can already start inspiring others. Very soon you’ll enter competition mode where you’ll be exposed to new areas of technology. Be open-minded, be curious, be fearless, and when you leave here, share what you learned with another girl who did not get a chance to be here today. That’s how we grow this movement. So when we meet here again next year, we won’t just be celebrating another event. We’ll be celebrating the impact of the steps you took. The girls you inspired, the bold actions, you turned into pledges because one day if we keep up this momentum, we’ll reach a point where we no longer have to talk about gender imbalance in ICT because it simply won’t exist.”
The ministry encourages young women throughout the nation to follow their theme and Lead Like a Girl. Britney Gordon for News Five.