To drive Nigeria’s economy and help shape her future, there is need for more girls and women to be empowered technologically. This was the submission of panelists at the Intel She Will Connect Masterclass session which held Wednesday, February 24, 2016 at the ongoing Social Media Week Lagos. The masterclass session was organised to provide gender relevant content with focus on existing digital divide, the implication of the divide on young girls, proffer solutions as well as project what Intel in collaboration with some NGO’s are doing to address the gap with the Intel She Will Connect programme. Themed “Overcoming the Digital Divide in her Shoes”, the session had in attendance as panelists, Iyadunni Olubode, Executive Director, Leap Africa; Chioma Agwuegbo, Lead Strategist, CC Consulting Services and founder, Tech Her; Oreoluwa Lesi, Founder and Executive Director, Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre(W.TEC) and Titilope Sonuga, Intel She Will Connect ambassador. Commenting on how technology can be used to address poverty, Olubode, remarked that improving women’s access to technology has a potential to spur their economic advancement and stimulate broader economic growth. In her words, “Regrettably, access to technology is still a major challenge for a lot of young women out there.
There is therefore an urgent need to encourage and push women towards technology through strategic partnerships and initiatives such as the Intel She Will Connect programme.” On her part, Agwuegbo noted that technology enhances what women are already doing and helps them take ownership of their lives. “Women are naturally entrepreneurial and empowering these women with technology skills will increase their chances of reaching out to more customers. Interestingly research has also shown that women are more responsive to technology once they have the knowledge and exposure,” she said. On how technology can be made more attractive to get women buy in, Lesi pointed out that when women are involved in the development and deployment lifecycle of a particular technology, her interest increases. She said, “Many women think technology is difficult and that is because they really don’t understand it. They need the right engagement to dispel this belief.”
The Intel She Will Connect masterclass programme also saw the silicon innovator introduce its recently launched online learning platform dubbed “My Digital Journey”, aimed at providing an opportunity for women to learn, connect and share online. According to Adim Isiakpona, Marketing & PR Manager, West Africa, Intel, the platform is a new addition to the Intel She Will Connect program and will help bridge the technology-gender gap, teach young women how to leverage the internet and to pursue their passion. Furthermore, he added that Intel She Will Connect is a movement that is opened to working in collaboration with organization whose interest is in connecting women to technology. Highlighting her focus for 2016, Sonuga stated that Intel She Will Connect will target getting more women into the movement as well as follow up on participants who have been trained to ascertain their success. “We are also going to be highlighting their stories. We have started that already with Jessica Orji, one of the participants who now applies technology to her hair business,” she said