“Change happens when we spread ideas” – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Growing up in Nigeria, I witnessed first-hand how a society’s culture can pose a threat to women advancing their careers – especially when it comes to technology. Young girls are less likely to pursue STEM careers because they hold on to a belief that one requires some sort of masculinity to succeed in this field. Inspired to change this narrative, my friends Teniola Awokulehin, Temi Adetula and I launched African Women Global Technology Initiative. The goal of this initiative is to inspire the next generation of female technologists and provide mentorship and support for women in technology in developing communities. Three weeks ago, we traveled back to Nigeria to host our inaugural tech meet-up in Lagos. We wanted the students to hear not just our stories, but stories from women technologists close to home. We had over 150 female students across 3 high schools in the area. Students from Leeland College, Vivian Fowler Memorial College and Pro Veritas College We spoke about our careers and roles as a technology associates at Morgan Stanley and encouraged the students to step above cultural limitations and realize their goals. We encouraged them to try one computer science course, whether in school or using resources available online. We had the honor of hearing from our keynote speaker, Abisoye Akinfolarin of Pearls Africa. She is one of the CNN Heroes of 2018, recognized for her after-school program in rural communities of Lagos, which focuses on teaching girls how to code. She shared her journey in Nigeria and highlighted opportunities available in technology. Keynote Speaker, Abisoye Akinfolarin Our panel session featured Dami Solesi, Founder and CEO of Smids Animation, myself and was moderated by Teniola Awokulehin. We discussed in depth why technology promises a great career prospect, what inspired us to choose technology and challenges women in technology face. We also provided recommended sites for learning programming. From left; Teniola Awokulehin, Dami Solesi and Esther Nwaka during the panel session Next, we had a breakout session where students were grouped with one of our speakers to ask follow-up questions. We were asked questions such as, “how can I combine computer science with my current coursework and career ambitions?; what are the resources available to learn programming?; “what is the salary of a technologist compared to other fields?” Students from participating schools during the breakout session We also heard from Ommo Clark, the CEO of iBez Nigeria; a company providing technology solutions to societal challenges within communities in Nigeria. We were inspired by her efforts to solve human trafficking issues in Edo State through technology. Ommo Clark, CEO iBez Nigeria We are thrilled to share that we offered one student from each participating school a scholarship to the “She Creates” coding camp organized by W.TEC. We worked with teachers and principals to select the best computer science student from low income households. This scholarship covers tuition, room and board. It will give these students an opportunity to learn programming outside of the school environment and hopefully inspire them to take more computer science courses in school. We feel blessed and honored to have an opportunity to give back to our community and hopefully inspire the next generation of female technologists. I am grateful to my alma mater, Smith College for investing in me. Thanks to Smith, I have an amazing cohort of friends and mentors like Caren Byrd, Zuliat Owoade and Darpan Bohara, who have been of tremendous support. I want to specially thank Khalid Yahia for being an inspiring part of this journey. Thank you to this amazing team and everyone who contributed to the success of this program
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