Women Enpower in ICT by Vodacom

Vodacom Business Nigeria, in line with its commitment to empowering youths through ICT, says it has collaborated with e-Business Life Communication Limited to support female senior secondary school students interested in studying Information and Communication Technology at tertiary education level.

Vodacom stated this after more than 100 Nigerian girls from private and public senior secondary schools in Lagos came together to celebrate the International Girls in ICT Day.

Speaking on the partnership, the Senior Manager, Product Portfolio, Vodacom Business Nigeria, Mrs. Obafunke Atanda, said that the number of women currently employed in ICT firms in Nigeria was extremely low when compared to their male counterparts. “This can be attributed not only to the relative lack of females studying science and technology at secondary and tertiary institutions but also the number of females given access to formal education,” she said.

According to her, the partnership is aimed at encouraging youths, especially females, to include science and technology among their career choices.

The intention, she said, was to increase the number of females in the ICT sector of Nigeria, “which is currently dominated by men.”

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She said, “The company promotes the education and training of girls in primary and secondary schools, thereby empowering them at a much earlier stage of their lives.

“We feel it is our responsibility to support initiatives aimed at increasing the number of skilled and qualified women in Nigeria, and we enjoin other companies to contribute to this course.”

She added that empowering female students would address the root cause of female backwardness such as poor education, unwanted teenage pregnancy and domestic violence.

The Chief Executive Officer of e-Business Life Communication Limited, convener of the Girls in ICT for Lagos, Mrs. Ufoma Emuophedaro, said companies like Vodacom were playing a key role in the global push to get young women and girls excited about a future career in ICT.

“You educate a woman, you educate a generation. We are grateful for Vodacom’s participation and support for this event,” she said.

Girls in ICT Day is a time when girls have the opportunity to reflect on the importance of ICT. It is a day girls gain hands-on skills in ICT development, and realise that coding, blogging or app development is a fun and creative way to make a difference in the digital world.