The slogan ‘the future is female’ has a long history. We all, or at least most of us, love how this phrase sounds.
It has been used, often overused, in various circles. One thing that has gained little attention is what we are doing to make this glorious future happen.
While we may have to wait a little longer to eliminate the existing economic, political and social gaps between men and women, the future looks promising.
The good news is that various organizations, mostly non-governmental, are doing something to fuel the ‘female future’ concept. Good examples are tech programs that seek to empower women. The main objectives of these programs are:
a) To inspire more girls to join STEM careers.
b) To offer networking, mentorship, and internship opportunities.
c) To curb a shift in careers.
The top 6 tech programs:
Akirachix
Akirachix was established to provide training, mentorship, and outreach programs with the goal of increasing the number of skilled women in technology. This, in essence, means nurturing generations of women who use tech to develop innovations and solutions for Africa and positively impact the community.
The program reaches out to young local girls from poor social and economic backgrounds. Since its establishment in 2010, AkiraChix has grown to include various programs that impact women and tech in various ways.
Safaricom’s Women in Tech
Safaricom Women in Technology (WIT) is an organization led by women from Safaricom technology divisions and whose focus is to encourage women from different backgrounds to advance their tech careers. These efforts are geared towards tapping into the unused talent and innovative ideas by women and girls.
The program is organized into 6 categories: KidzGoTech which engages children (5-13-year-olds) in science-based experiments, 47/47 Girls High School outreach which encourages girls to make STEM career choices, and Technovation Challenge which focuses on the development of mobile apps.
Campus Outreach seeks to inspire and retain girls studying IT and engineering while Technology Academy is an internship program targeting women living with disabilities. Finally, the WIT Forum – held monthly, aims to motivate and empower professional women pursuing technology careers and grow in their careers.
African Women in Tech-Kenya
African Women in Technology (AWIT) event series was established to connect, educate and empower women who are interested in advancing their tech careers.
AWIT is a product of IBOM LLC which has served small business owners in for over 7 years. The main focus is to educate Africans in the Diaspora, by hosting tech events and educational seminars to small and medium-sized businesses.
As part of its global expansion plan, IBOM LLC, together with its business partners, is continuing its mission to educate the African community by hosting the African Women in Tech events in countries across Africa. The program offers network, mentorship, and internship opportunities to the target population. Entrepreneurs can also access funding with AWIT conference.
Shehacks KE’s
Shehacks Kenya is an all-female community that was founded in 2016 by Patricia Rotich with the assistance of Safaricom’s Women in Technology. SheHacks has continually held outreaches, boot-camps and webinar sessions in Nairobi and Eldoret as its demand grows.
The initial goal of this program was to give women in cybersecurity a platform where they could interact, learn, network as well assist those who would like to join this industry. Today, the program targets women in technology especially those want to learn more about information technology security or those whose mission is to join the industry but have little or no knowledge.
KamiLimu
KamiLimu is a free 6-month structured mentorship program that seeks to expand classroom learning for Computer Science students at Kenyan universities.
The program was founded in September 2016 with a cohort of 33 students from 4 universities and continues to enroll more. 50% of the mentees are female students.
Women Tech Maker
Google in partnership with women tech makers seeks to increase the participation of women in technology events at annual conferences for developers and technologists.
Their main aim is to provide visibility, create communities and provide resources for women in technology.
Take advantage of these programs and let’s make the ‘future is female’ idea come to life. It won’t just happen because we keep articulating it.
Standard Chartered Women in Tech Incubator
The Standard Chartered Women in Tech Incubator program was created through the partnership of Standard Chartered Bank and @iBizAfrica, Strathmore Business School. This program supports female-led entrepreneurial teams, Providing them with training, mentorship and seed funding.
Are you a beneficiary of any of the above programs? Share your experience with us in the comments section. Also, if you know of other great programs, share with us in the comments section.
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