Abuja, April 25, 2019 (NAN) Dr Ike Adinde, Administrator, Digital Bridge Institute (DBI) has called on Nigerian girls and women to take up careers in Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
Adinde made the call on Thursday in Abuja at the DBI celebration of International Telecommunication Union of Girls in ICT Day 2019, tagged “Expand Horizons, Change Attitudes.”
The International Girls in ICT Day is a day recognised around the world held every fourth Thursday in April to support the creation of a global environment for girls and young women to pursue careers in ICT.
He said that the theme for the 2019 celebration would encourage girls to reach beyond societal norms, hinderances and perception in ICT.
“ Each time we introduce more women of the world to ICTs, not only do we take one more steps towards achieving gender equality, but we accelerate social-economic development for all.
” I want to use this occasion to encourage young ladies that the future is at their feet and that technology has no gender.
“If you are committed, focused and determined, you will find your game and place on the technology turf.
“‘It is gladening to note that more females are enrolling for ICT innovation programmes.
“Though the margin between males and females is still wide , with the current redefinition of global thinking. In no distant time this gap will be eliminated,” he said.
Adinde said that DBI was one of the focal institutions driving ICT capacity development in Nigerian schools.
“We have seen girls excel in sciences what we are doing today is to show that our girls have potential and that they should not be limited by cultural, religious norms or whatever the case may be.
“We ensure that all presenters at the event are ladies, this will did so that the young girls can learn from them because these ladies were once young like them before they studied ICT,” he said.
He said that DBI had also partnered some schools in the FCT to encourage girls to adopt science subjects and make them understand need for a career in ICT.
“More importantly we have also put out some courses to encourage young people particularly the girls,’’he said.
Also speaking at the event, Mrs Tokunbo Oyeleye, Deputy Director, New Media, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) encouraged more women to have the right attitude towards ICT.
Oyeleye said that digital skills were required for almost all careers that anyone choose to undertake, adding that it was necessary for women and girls to understand and develop interest in ICT.
Miss Favour Uduebholo of DBI also said that technology had become the bedrock of everything in the present day.
She said that the sector was the fastest growing in the country, however, he said having only 22 per-cent women taking up jobs in ICT was not good enough.(NAN)
