Jun

23

The Activist

There are different ways Nigerian female activists or citizens of various background and occupations can contribute to social issues in Nigeria or the world at large. One very quick and free way is through the use of web 2.0 tools such as social netwroking sites, blogs to advance different causes as can be seeing while clicking on the image to the right. This will help promote your cause and help it attract larger audience.

The Tell Magazine recently features one of Nigerian Female bloggers and activists that uses her blog “The Activist” to promote and advance women’s human rights, gender and development  in Nigeria.

There are different ways a blog can be used to contribute to the community. Take a step today and create a blog using free tools provided by blogger.com or wordpress.com, you will be glad you did.

Jun

19

The following article on Slate examines why female mentors are an important factor in attracting more girls and women to the sciences: www.slate.com/id/2219701?nav=wp

Jun

3

As opposed to what is known as the general belief that Nigeria is the worst perpetrator of cybercrime in the world, it’s being proven that this is not true statistically.

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USA is top on the list with 66% rate, UK 10% and Nigeria 7%. Read more on this cybercrime report on Nigeriancuriosity Blog.

Let’s all say no to cybercrime and fight it in our own way, then we will be on the path to having a better world.


May

17

In commemoration of World Telecoms & Information Society Day (WISD) 2009, W.TEC is sharing some tips which we disseminate to the girls who participate in our programs for staying safe online. This is not a comprehensive list, so feel free to share your own tips and suggestions.

Blogging is a fun way to keep in touch with distant friends, make new ones and tell your own stories. However, there are a few things that you need to know about keeping safe online (‘Online’
means being on an Internet website or weblog. ‘Offline’ means real life i.e. not on the Internet).

May

15

By Oreoluwa Somolu and ‘Gbenga Sesan

May 17 is World Information Society Day. To understand its significance in history, it is important to journey back 144 years ago. That same day in 1865, the first International Telegraph Convention was signed and the International Telegraph Union (the second-oldest international organization in existence) was established. That same institution became the International Telecommunications Union in 1947 – the same year that the transistor was first demonstrated, with the solid-state computer soon to follow. Since 1969, May 17 has been celebrated as the World Telecommunication Day. Thirty-seven years later, following the World Summit on the Information Society, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution which identifies 17 May as World Information Society Day. The day is intended to remind the world of the vision of the World Summit on the Information Society, which promised to build “a people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented information society” based on fundamental human rights. According to the UN resolution, the Day will “help to raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICTs) can bring to societies and economies, as well as of ways to bridge the digital divide“.

The Nigerian telecommunications industry – which started with the postal system – is now over 100 years old, but it was only in 1999 that the National Policy on Telecommunications was launched. A National Policy on Information Technology followed in 2001, along with the establishment of the National Information Technology Development Agency, under the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology. Fortunately, Nigeria’s participation in the World Summit on the Information Society process helped shed more light on the need for Nigeria to benefit from the undeniable convergence that has brought Information Technology, telecommunications and content together for good. At about the same period in Nigeria’s history, a telecommunication revolution was born – with the number of telephone lines growing from 450,000 in 2000 to over 14 million lines in 2005, and now 66.6 million, thanks to independent regulation through the Nigerian Communications Commission, private sector participation, broadened competition, and consumer spending. Many benefits have come to the Nigerian Information Society since then, including a rapid rise in the number of Internet users from 200,000 in 2000 to 10 million today! Many of these users are also contributing to the growth of local content on the World Wide Web, which was previously lacking in content from Nigeria. The private sector and civil society (including the media) also continue to add immense value, using varied models to work towards the task of bridging the digital divide.

Building a strong and vibrant information society that is accessible to all Nigerians is at the heart of W.TEC and PIN’s work. The Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre (W.TEC) is a Nigerian non-governmental organization helping to empower Nigerian girls and women socially and economically using ICTs. This is done through technology literacy training, technology-based projects, mentoring, work placement and research. Paradigm Initiative Nigeria (PIN) is a social enterprise that connects young people – especially those in underserved communities – with the opportunities that ICTs provide. We do this through our Ajegunle.org initiative, Information Society research, capacity building sessions for youth across Nigeria and the Internet Safety, Security and Privacy Initiative for Nigeria, among others. PIN’s program graduates have gone on to demonstrate the impact of ICTs on their small-scale businesses and through inspiring career progress!

This year, W.TEC and PIN wish to commemorate the World Information Society Day by appreciating ongoing initiatives in various sectors and calling on all stakeholders (government, private sector, civil society, media, individuals, etc) to act faster on efforts that will improve Nigeria’s opportunity to maximise the benefits of the Information Society. Please join us to spread the message, “Nigeria’s Information Society is making progress but we call on stakeholders to act faster. Our ‘20:2020’ vision depends on our ICT prowess!” on May 17 by:
- Lending us your Twitter or Facebook status message;
- Changing your email signature to reflect this message;
- Sending this article to 5 friends;
- Discussing the impact of ICTs in your life with friends and family;
- Volunteering for a non-profit ICT initiative before the next WISD anniversary.

May

12

W.TEC recently completed the Young Women’s Programme, which ended with very enthusiastic feedback from the participants.

The W.TEC Young Women’s Programme helped women (18 to 30 years) develop ICT skills for four key aspects of their lives: Leadership; Activism; Career Preparation; and Learning. The 7-day programme taught the basics of using computers and applications that they are likely to use in school or work. It took place in Lagos, Nigeria.

We invite you to view photographs from the programme, which are now available online: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wtec/sets/72157617708236641/.

You can also see photographs from all previous W.TEC programmes: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wtec/.

Thank you for your continued support.

Ore

May

11

PulseWire has a great article on 10 Ways to Give to Women and Girls, which neatly highlights ways to support work towards women’s issues.

The article starts off with an unsettling reality: that although investing in women has been widely acknowledged as an effective way to address many global problems, social initiatives that focus on women actually receive less than 7% of all philanthropic funding worldwide. It is particularly worse for start-up and grassroots organisations who work very closely with their local communities and who are not on the radar of many big funders.

Another sad reality (not really discussed here) is that many social initiatives struggle to implement a huge mission and are not adept or have the time and resources to publicise their work. So, they continue to work under challenging circumstances and continue to experience difficulties in raising the requisite funding.

PulseWire’s suggestions for supporting women’s work includes:

May

7

The Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre (W.TEC) is now accepting nominations for its upcoming W.TEC Girls Technology Camp.

The 1-week residential camp will take place in Lagos in August 2009. This W.TEC initiative is aimed at helping girls develop an early interest in computers and other information and communication technology (ICT), as well as enabling them develop positive images of technology-related careers.

Objectives:
The primary aims of this camp are to:
1. Introduce Nigerian girls to computers and other ICTs, which they can use productively for school, work and leisure
2. Encourage girls to consider a technology career, by giving a realistic and positive idea of technology-related careers through career talks and career-themed films
3. Help girls plan their future careers with the assistance of mentors and women currently working in these fields

Criteria for Eligibility:
The programme is targeted at female students who are:
• Female students currently in JSS 2 to SSS 2 and no younger than 11 years of age
• Must have an excellent academic record
• Interested in learning about computers and other information technology
• Must have the consent of either parent or guardian to stay in the camp with other girls for 1 week in August 2009

Application:
To apply, nominate a girl who meets the above criteria to be invited for a pre-selection written test and oral interview. Include the following information for the nominee: First and Last Names; Class; Age; School; Contact Address; Phone Number; and Email Address.

Your nominations should be sent by the deadline of Friday, May 29th, 2009 by:
1. E-mail: info@w-teconline.org
2. Mail: W.TEC, P.O. Box 50389, Falomo, Ikoyi, Lagos
3. Online submission from our website: www.w-teconline.org
4. Hand delivery to our office: W.TEC, Suite 88, Block A-4, Sura Shopping Complex, Simpson Street, Lagos Island , Lagos

For more information, visit the website: www.w-teconline.org, or contact Oluwatoyin Ajao-Dawodu by phone: + 234 1 850 9782 or e-mail: info@w-teconline.org.

Apr

28

W.TEC has been busy recently. At the moment, we are hosting the 1st edition of the W.TEC Young Women’s Programme. This is an ICT education programme that seeks to empower young women aged 18 to 30 in 4 major aspects of their lives: Leadership; Activism; Career Advancement and Learning.

As part of the programme, our young ladies have opened personal blogs, which are listed below:

Apr

16

Florence Seriki, MD/CEO of Omatek Computers (and W.TEC advisory board member) was recognised as one of the Legends of Technology at the recently-held Titans of Tech National ICT Merit Award. Read more about this award from the Vanguard Newspaper website.


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