Nigeria’s ICT ministry Plans to get more girls and women in ICT

17th Feb 2015 The Ministry of Information and Communication technology, and its Minister Mrs Omobola Johnson, are committed is committed to introducing and welcoming girls into ICT.

This information was shared by Madam Olufunke Baruwa, the Technical Assistant, Research of the Ministry, at the launch of the ICT Club of the Pyramid of Excellence Schools in Abuja. Mrs Baruwa that Nigeria’s federal government in partnership with information and communication technology solutions provider Huawei, will train one thousand girls in ICT.

The project aims to financially empower female pupils by improving their chances of getting employment with basic ICT skills. According to Mrs Baruwa, the initiative, tagged “Huawei 1,000 MCT/Girls ICT Training programme,” is the brainchild of the Federal Ministry of Communication Technology.

She is quoted as saying “The ICT sector is emerging as the fastest growing sector in Nigeria, recording a 30 per cent year-on-year growth with the potential to significantly contribute to increasing the social welfare of men and women in the future. Towards this end, the Federal Government is committed to changing the perception of young people to ICT and encouraging positive interest and engagement in their academics as well as to pursue future careers in ICT.”

She explained that the project cuts across both girls and women, as a start to leveling the gender imbalance in the sector, which is still largely seen as a mostly male field. In this regard she is quoted as saying “This disparity in adoption of ICT by women and girls globally reveal a big gulf between women and men in the adoption of ICTs that needs to be bridged. It is our hope that the effective implementation of these initiatives in schools across the country will go a long way in removing the barriers that discourage girls from embracing careers in ICTs.”