As portals to essential services move on online, people without digital skills or internet access risk further social and economic exclusion, speakers at the fourth Women in Information Technology Society (WIITSoN) conference have said.
WIITSoN formerly known as Nigeria Women in Information Technology (NIWIIT) is an advocacy group under the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) that focuses on bridging digital divide among women and girl-child across Nigeria.
Re-echoing the pronounced inequalities in digital skills which have been documented in both developing and developed countries, Philip Shaibu, the Deputy Governor of Edo State, described the Conference theme; ‘Skills for a Connected World: Closing Gender Digital Divides’, as apt and relevant to discussing way forward on bridging the divides.
Shaibu said that considering the fact that the world is becoming universally connected, with an estimated 95 percent of the global population living in an area covered by at least a basic 2G mobile-cellular network, African women should be supported to key into the emerging technological trends.
The Deputy Governor represented by the SSA, Women, Health and Sports, Sabina Chikere, said the government has passion to empower the people, especially the girl-child which metamorphosis to women empowerment.
This, the Deputy Governor, informed the decision of the State to leverage technologies in training and retraining ladies who recently returned from Libya and re-integrate them to the society.
“It is important we have realised there is a gap and we shall make efforts to bridge that gap. That is one of the things WIITSoN is trying to do. We need to come out; we have the capacity to do it. I just want to encourage WIITSoN because Edo State Government is interested in partnering with you on this matter. We have to leverage technology to transform the lives of our people, especially in mentoring them to embrace digital economy.
“As a State on our part will not relent on encouraging women participation in technology, because that is the way. We do need skills to be relevant in the digital world. It will not be out of place to have our female taking after the likes of Steve Jobs (late); Mark Zuckerberg; Bill Gates; Michael Dell and others who are trail blazers.
Ibukun Odusote, the Permanent Secretary (Political Affairs), Office of the Secretary to the Federation, stressed the importance of creating enabling environment for the girl-child to develop confidence in the digital economy.
She identified women are the backbones of Africa’s digital development, but require modern skills to thrive.
“Let our children mirror us technologically. Artificial intelligence, robotics, machine learning, amongst others are the trending topics. Unfortunately, we still have women or mothers who are yet to appreciate the relevance of the emerging trends in the lives of our young girls. We need to speedily address that”, she said.
In a keynote address, Yuwa Naps, Director, Edo State Information Technology and Communication Technology Agency, said womenfolk must embrace digital productive tools to better their worth.
She asserted that women must enmesh themselves with modern (digital) skills, transferring the knowledge to their children as means to enhance their capacity and relevance in modern work place.
“Your smartphone is not just for selifes, rather an ‘office’. Your Facebook wall is your modern (online) shop; engage in productive gossips. IT/ICT tools are not for luxury- you can monitor your children and your home remotely”, Naps added.
Peter Oluka
Peter Oluka is the Editor of TechEconomy.
