Mar

26

Then you need to know this:

Applications are now being accepted for the Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre (W.TEC)’s “Networking for Success” program.

The Networking for Success project will teach women how to use Web 2.0 tools and other ICTs to effectively develop and advance their work. Participants will learn how to use technology to initiate and manage projects; as well as identify networking opportunities with other organisations.

Objectives:

Through the project, participants will:

  1. Develop skills in the use and management of Web 2.0 tools (blogs, wikis, podcasts) and other technologies in order to build capacity and efficiency into their organisation’s work
  2. Learn how to work collaboratively with colleagues within and outside of their organisations using ICTs
  3. Learn how to identify and assess the appropriateness of various ICTs to different tasks

Duration:
1 Month (There are 3 offerings in May, June and July)

Application:

Application closes on Friday, April, 2008. Feel free to use any of the following method of submission
Print out the application form and submit to our office:

  1. W.TEC
    Suite 88, Block A-4
    Sura Shopping Complex
    Simpson Street, Lagos Island
    Lagos
  2. Type-out your responses to the questions on the application form and email to us at info@w-teconline.org.
  3. Post your completed form to us at: W.TEC, P.O. Box 50389, Falomo, Ikoyi, Lagos.

For further information, contact Ms. Oluwatoyin Ajao-Dawodu at info@w-teconline.org or 01-850 9782.

Mar

22

Vagina Monologues a tribute to women’s sexuality and a condemnation of its violation came to Nigeria in 2006 through Kudirat Initiative for Democracy (KIND) using the Eve Ensler’s version of the Obie-Award winning play. 2 years after it was made in another version titled V-Monologues the Nigerian story. This year, KIND in collaboration with Project Alert on Violence Against Women, Ajegunle Community Project, Civil Liberty Organisation, CORDAID and MEDIA Concern Initiative – for women and children staged the powerful and wonderful performance on telling our own story from Nigeria’s perspective in Lagos and Abuja, depicting the story in a way that the Nigerian people can relate with it through our diverse cultures and traditions without deviating from the vision and mission of V-Day.

The play performance showcased issues ranging from rape, incest, women trafficking, harmful widowhood practices, and violence against women.

The money generated from the play in 2006 was donated to the victims of violence especially through the Sophia’s place a shelter for abused women owned by Project Alert on Violence against Women. Furniture worth N250, 000 was bought and N400, 000 was given in cash. In 2007, the proceed from the play was donated to Media Concern Initiative- for Women and Children. The beneficiary of this year’s play is yet to be named.

Another success story from this effort is Lagos State Government passing into law the bill providing protection against domestic violence and related purposes in 2007

The Birth of Vagina Monolgues was possible through Eve Ensler(author, an award-winning playwright, poet, activist, and screenwriter who wrote the play in 2006 through an idea she got from a friend she had a conversation with who described feelings of shame and disgust toward her menopausal body. Realizing that many women—menopausal or not—had similar feelings about their bodies, the playwright went on to interview some two hundred women around the world, then turned some of the interviews into monologues. She first performed them as a solo show in 1997 in the basement of a café in New York’s Greenwich Village.

She wrote it as a way to “celebrate the vagina” and show that it is a tool of female empowerment – the ultimate embodiment of individuality. Not minding the criticism it received, she forged ahead. It was clear that something widespread and dramatic needed to be done in joining organizations fighting to stop all forms of violence and discriminations against women to stop the violence. A group of women in New York joined Eve and founded V-Day . . All these were possible through a brilliant idea from an intelligent, unrelenting, determined Eve Ensler

The V-Day was born and it’s a movement that is growing at a rapid pace throughout the world, in over 120 countries from Europe to Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, and all of North America.

V-Day is celebrated every February 14th since 1998. The V stood for valentine, vagina and victory. It was an attempt to link love and respect for women, while ending violence against women and girls.

V-Day is a global movement to stop violence against women and girls. V-Day is a catalyst that promotes creative events to increase awareness, raise money and revitalize the spirit of existing anti-violence organizations. V-Day generates broader attention for the fight to stop violence against women and girls, including rape, battery, incest, female genital mutilation (FGM) and sexual slavery and the main event of V Day is the Vagina Monologues play showing in different part of the World at this time of the year.

The V-Day movement has raised over $50 million to assist women faced with different issues all over the world some of which are listed below

The V-Day’s Mission

Some of the countries which Vagina monologues have be showing are, Egypt, Sudan, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, Nigeria, Indonesia, Afghanistan, London, United State, Canada, San fransico, Rome, South Africa, and Nigeria

Vagina-Monologues have being showing for a span of 10 years starting from 1998 after Eve Ensler first performance in 1997. This is its 10th year.

Contribution by Oluwatoyin Ajao-Dawodu

Mar

19

Goldman Sachs, the investment banking and securities firm, has launched an initiative aimed at providing women entrepreneurs in emerging and developing economies with business and management education.

The initiative, called 10,000 Women, is intended to target women already engaged in small businesses in developing countries and provide them with further training in subjects including marketing, e-commerce, accounting and accessing capital.

Check 10,000women.org for more info.

Contributed by Ore

Mar

18

Women in ICT Forum

March 18, 2008 | 1 Comment

Titan of Tech’s Forum on Women in ICT is a few days away. Here’s a quick excerpt…Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are for everyone and women have to be an equal beneficiary to the advantages offered by the technology, and the products and processes, which emerge from their use.
ICT in convergence with other forms of communication have the potential to reach women who hitherto have not been reached by any other media, thereby empowering them to participate in economic and social progress, and make informed decision on issues that affect them.

Purpose of forum
The forum seeks to create a platform for women in ICT to:
1. Network and synergize
2. Share ideas
3. Chart a course for women empowerment
4. Explore the avenues for national development created by ICT

Participants profile
Women CEOs of ICT firms
leading women in ICT from the public and private sectors
the academia
market women leaders (Idumota, Oshodi, Ikeja, Mushin and other major markets across Lagos State),
female students.

Sponsorship benefits
For sponsorship details – contact us

Theme: Women in ICT Forum
Date: April 4, 2008
Venue: Muson Center, Lagos
Time: 10am – 5pm

Contributed by Oluwatoyin Ajao-Dawodu

Mar

17

This Technology Times article gives a good overview of indigenous participation in the Nigerian ICT sector.

It highlights the lack of skilled manpower and the need to address this in order to keep the industry growing and developing as it should.

Contributed by Ore

Mar

12

We’re trying to do a proper welcome to our readers, so “Welcome.” This is the blog for the Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre (W.TEC).

W.TEC is a young organisation working to empower women socially and economically using technology. We plan on doing this through technology literacy classes, projects, mentoring, internship schemes and research.

To commemorate International Women’s Day and International Women’s Week, we compiled writings on women and women’s issues from many contributors and posted them to the blog (see most of the previous posts). Since the Women’s Week is still on-going, we are still accepting submissions. We are happy to offer this opportunity and forum for people to share their thoughts, fears, joy and hopes for womenfolk the world over.

By Ore (W.TEC Blog Admin)

Mar

12

The Stanford Centre for Innovations in Learning (SCIL) in collaboration with the Swiss Center for Innovations in Learning is launching a website to track research on eLearning (or electronic learning, which some might think of as distance learning mediated over the Internet and other electronic media).

According to the blurb on the website, elearning-reviews, “provides those interested in research on elearning with concise and thoughtful reviews of relevant publications. The most important goal is a well-balanced selection of seminal publications as well as interesting up-to-date publications from the various disciplinary perspectives.”

Mar

12

Here’s a tool that I just learnt about (I’m yet to try it though). It allows anyone to create a website that is viewable on mobile phone screens.

Anyone who has tried browsing using a mobile phone will have realised that what might have been a well thought-out interface usually does not translate the same way on the small screens of most mobile and hand-held devices.

According to the website, Swift is a free and easy-to-use tool for creating a user-friendly website in minutes. Alternatively you can use content from an already existing website.

I look forward to getting comments from people who have tried it (or something like it) out.

Contributed by Ore (W.TEC Blog Admin)

Mar

12

Systers Online Community is pleased to announce the creation of the Pass-It-On Grants to honor Anita Borg’s desire to create a network of technical women helping one another.

The grants, funded by donations from the Systers community, are intended as means for women established in technological fields to support women seeking their place in the fields of technology.

The grants are called “Pass-It-On” grants because they come with the moral obligation to “pass on” the benefits gained from the grant. Next scheduled round is March 30, 2008

Pass-it-on Grants are open to any woman over 18 years old in or aspiring to be in the fields of computing. Grants are open to women in all countries and range from $500.00 to $1000.00 (USD).

Applications covering a wide variety of needs and projects are encouraged, such as:
* Small grant to help with studies, job transfers or other transitions in life.
* A broader project that benefits girls and women.
* Projects that seek to inspire more girls and women to go into the computing field.
* Assistance with educational fees and materials.
* Partial funding source for larger scholarship.
* Mentoring and other supportive groups for women in technology or computing.

Read for more info

Contributed by Ore (W.TEC Blog Admin)

Mar

12

Women receive the brunt of the ills of the society especially with regards to:

  1. Weak Economy – Women are most pressured to meet up with the socio-economic needs of the family.
  2. Poor Educational Attainment – women are denied education when making choice in the family not minding the fact of their intelligence and that when you educate a women, you educate the nation.
  3. Natural Disasters – Famine, droughts, out-break of diseases, flood, wars and so on affect women and sets them backward economically.
  4. Migration/Urbanization – Men move to cities leaving women behind to take care of the home and the children, she works hard to make sue her home and family are well provided for.
  5. Food Security – When there is inadequate food, scarcity sets in and the woman worries herself to death.
  6. Ill-Health/Diseases/Low Productivity: As a result, Malnutrition/Undernutrition is experienced. Productivity is at its lowest ebb because much time and money is spent on home nursing.
  7. Poor or Inadequate Shelter: Poor environments with shanty/slums springing up, blocked waterway, canals/drainages or the lack of it, improper disposal of waste products leads to outbreak of diseases, also, poor environment or inadequate shelter encourages criminal activities such as prostitution allegedly to make ends meet, hide out for criminals such as robbers, arms deals and runnings and for safe-keeping of arms.
  8. Unemployment/Underemployment as a result of poor educational attainment leads to low/under-representation of women at policy making levels.
  9. Inappropriate Developmental Policies: This affects women adversely because women are not well represented at decision-making levels.

The Way Forward:

Written by Development Information Network
Lagos, Nigeria

keep looking »

Blogroll

WP Themes