CARICOM joins International Girls in ICT Day

THE Caribbean Community (CARICOM), for the first time yesterday, joined the rest of the world in observing the third annual International Girls in Information Communication and Technology (ICT) Day.
The occasion is a celebration of the successes of leading women in ICT and a platform for inspiring the next generation of girls to pursue an exciting career in the field.CARICOM Deputy Secretary-General, Ms. Manorma Soeknandan, pointed out that the current “tech image” restricts persons in the sphere to being boring or geeky, but emphasised that women bring a new perspective to various sectors and can make an important contribution to the continued evolution of ICT.
“The scope of opportunities is limitless,” she declared, at the opening of a workshop hosted by the Secretariat at Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, yesterday.
According to her, there are success stories to evidence the role of women in the ICT field but she contends that those are still too few.
Soeknandan added that barriers to the entrance of more women into this practice are known, as well as some of the solutions to the problem.

MAKING STRIDES
She noted, though, that CARICOM is making strides to improve the situation and mentioned the headways made at the last Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government.
The 25th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the CARICOM Heads of Government, which was held at Buccament Bay Resort, in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, from March 10 to 11 2014, addressed the Region’s ICT advance.
On that occasion the Heads reaffirmed that ICT is a priority and has a role in developing all sectors and advancing all regional initiatives and imperatives.
They agreed that developing a CARICOM Digital Economy is key to changing the socio-economic profile of the Region and for creating jobs, especially for the Community’s youth, new opportunities and engendering innovation and competitiveness.
There was also agreement that ICT efforts should be undertaken in tandem with the reform process of the Region and those sustained in the years 2014-2015 be on building a Single ICT space as part of the digital layer of the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME).

ROAD MAP
This includes addressing issues related to roaming rates and improved broadband service across the Region and, towards that objective, a road map for implementation of the Single ICT space be presented for consideration at the July 2015 Meeting.
The Regional leaders decided to accord priority attention to cyber security and expressed appreciation to the Prime Minister of Grenada, Dr. Keith Mitchell, for his leadership in advancing the ICT Agenda at their meeting.
They commended, too, the CARICOM Secretariat and regional organisations including Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), Caribbean Broadcasting Union (CBU), Caribbean Knowledge and Learning Network (CKLN) and Caribbean Centre for Development Administration (CARICAD) in supporting the Lead Head for ICT matters and reaffirmed the coordinating role of the CARICOM Secretariat.
Soeknandan, yesterday, as well, said she hoped the workshop would serve to stimulate young girls’ thinking as it relates to the “limitless” opportunities in the ICT field and re-engage those currently in the field.
The forum saw the participation of about 100 girls from the University of Guyana (UG) and secondary schools in Regions Three (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara) and Four (Demerara/ Mahaica), including the Bishops’ High School, Brickdam and Annandale Secondary Schools, among others.
The focus was to direct the attention of the girls towards a career in ICT, the programmes, internships, training opportunities and other resources available. It also underscored the fact that one compelling reason to get into the ICT field is the known need for skilled professionals and that many companies and organisations are, actively, seeking to hire highly skilled technical women.
Head of the Computer Science Department of UG, Mr. Lenandler Singh made a presentation on a preliminary analysis of ‘Girls in ICT.’
He said that, at the secondary school level, more girls than boys are taking IT at the Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate (CSEC) level but, as a core subject, like Mathematics and English, not for the sake of pursuing it as a career.
Singh stated that, at UG, the number of diploma and degree graduates is dismal, ranging from five to 11.
“We know there is a problem,” he acknowledged, noting the gender imbalance in the pursuit.
The Department Head recommended an examination of the issue, bearing in mind the Guyana context, which is unique, in comparison to other nations.

GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT
Another part of the workshop was CARICOM’s Caribbean Youth Ambassadors (CYAs) from Grenada and St. Kitts and Nevis, among other countries, who made presentations on their understanding of ICT and its evolution, careers in the field, the usefulness of the sector and its contribution to global development.
The ‘Girls in ICT’ initiative of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) is a global effort to raise awareness on empowering and encouraging girls and young women to consider studies and careers in the vocation.
The initiative is committed to celebrating and commemorating the International Girls in ICT Day on the fourth Thursday of every April, as established by the ITU membership.
International Girls in ICT Day is an observance backed by ITU Member States in ITU Plenipotentiary Resolution 70 (Guadalajara 2010) to create a global environment that empowers and encourages girls and young women to consider careers in the growing ICT sector.