Category: DLI Initiatives

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First African Digital Woman of the Year Announced

OkelloDr. Dorothy Okello of Kampala, Uganda is Africa’s first-ever Digital Woman of the Year, an honor bestowed upon her at an Africa ICT Days gala ceremony for the Digital Woman Award finalists that took place on 16 November in Yaoundé, Cameroon. According to Award organisers, Dr. Okello distinguished herself among a vast and talented pool of candidates from across Africa for her work to increase participation of girls and women in digital sectors in Africa and around the world.

Dr. Okello holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Makerere University in Uganda, a Master of Electrical Engineering from Kansas University in the United States, and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, where she received a Commonwealth scholarship. In May 2000, Dr. Okello founded WOUGNET (Women of Uganda Network) with several women’s organisations in Uganda. WOUGNET is an NGO whose purpose is to promote uptake of information and communication technologies (ICT) among women.

Join us in congratulating Dr. Okello and wishing her a fruitful year as Africa’s first Digital Woman of the Year!

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Finalists for African Digital Woman of the Year Announced

Congratulations to the first-ever finalists for the Ada Awards African Digital Woman of the Year! These candidates stood out against a very talented and wide-ranging group of incredible women, judged on the basis of their background in digital studies and work, on the social, creative and leadership impact they each have as an individual, and their general suitability to be a digital ambassador for all of Africa.

regina-agyareMs. Regina Agyare of Accra, Ghana

Watch Ms. Agyare’s video on her project “Tech Needs Girls Ghana,” and why she thinks science and technology is for everyone, including girls.

 

Ms. Rebecca Enonchong, of Douala, Cameroon

Watch Ms. Enonchong’s video on why and how she promotes greater uptake of ICTs by women in Africa.

 

OkelloDr. Dorothy Okello of Kampala, Uganda

Dr. Okello founded WOUGNET (Women of Uganda Network) with several women’s organisations in Uganda. WOUGNET is an NGO whose purpose is to promote uptake of information and communication technologies (ICT) among women.

CIMG4878 copyMs. Rainatou Sow of Conakry, Guinea

 

 

 

Please join us in congratulating these very deserving women, stay tuned here to learn more about each of them, and get ready to celebrate with us at Africa ICT Days in Youndé, Cameroon on 16 November, when we announce the 2013 African Digital Woman of the Year™!

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African Digital Woman Award Launch

On the heels of a fantastic 2013 European Digital Woman of the Year™ Award campaign, we are thrilled to announce the launch of the African Digital Woman of the Year™ Award! Enjoy here a message about these awards by Dr. Hamadoun Touré, Secretary General of the United Nations International Telecoms Union (ITU)!

To find out more about the different Ada Award categories, please see below.

To find out what’s happening in your region of the world, please see below.

To support the Awards — globally, in Europe, the Americas, Asia or Africa — please contact us!

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African Ada Awards Launch

Welcome to the African Digital Woman of the Year™ Award! This award was launched in Africa in Autumn 2013 under the patronage of Dr. Hamadoun Touré, Secretary General of the UN ITU, and the first African Digital Woman of the Year was announced on 16 November as part of African ICT Days in Yaoundé, Cameroun.

For more information about the African Digital Woman of the Year™ Award or to become an award partner or sponsor, please contact us!

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Banner Girls in ICT Day for Digital Muse!

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Digital Muse Treat: EU Commission VP Kroes & Girls

On 25 April 2013, Digital Muse celebrated International Girls in ICT Day by contributing to the United Nations ITU, EU Commission and EU Parliament events taking place in Brussels. The day began with ITU Secretary General Hamadoun Touré officially launching global Girls in ICT Day at the “Women in STEM” breakfast of Zen Digital sister-initiative Women2020.

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Girls in ICT VIPs & Digital Muse Founder

This momentous event was followed by a full day of Digital Muse workshops on “The Tech Behind DJ-ing & Digital Music Composition,” led by DM veterans Sandrine Droubaix and Tony Welter, as part of the “DigitaLive” activities at Tour & Taxis in Brussels. Youngsters from Belgium and around the world composed and presented musical creations to Ms. Neelie Kroes, EU Commission Vice President for the Digital Agenda, Brussels Region Minister of Employment Céline Fremault and Secretary General Touré.

Girls Learn the Tech Behind Digital Music with Tony Welter
Girls Learn the Tech Behind Digital Music with Tony Welter

Later in the day, VP Kroes spoke at an EU Parliament hearing on the topic of girls and women in ICT and generously lauded Zen Digital initiatives Digital Muse and inQube, and our newly-launched Digital Woman and Digital Girl of the Year Awards, as the very kinds of activities needed to increase participation of girls and women in digital studies and careers.

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Cheryl at WSIS Panel on Women in ICT Careers

On the heels of this amazing day, Cheryl Miller, Digital Muse Founder, was invited to contribute to a global panel on Women in ICT at the ITU’s World Summit on the Information Society on 15 May in Geneva. Following that, Zen Digital and Digital Muse have been asked to further contribute to ITU’s activities promoting digital and entrepreneurship skills for youth by curating and running workshops for “Get Ahead” Day at BYND 2015, the UN’s Global Youth Summit taking place in San José, Costa Rica on 9-11 September 2013.

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Next Stop: Costa Rica!

Be sure to like us on Facebook to enjoy more content from Girls in ICT Day, and to stay tuned with our upcoming Digital Muse activities!