– to help bridge gender disparity in IT sector

GUYANESE Girls Code was launched on Saturday as the Public Telecommunications Ministry collaborates with the National Centre for Educational Resource Development (NCERD) and the University of Guyana (UG) to address the gender disparity in Guyana’s Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector.

The 12-week course, designed to teach beginners coding and programming, commenced at UG’s Education Lecture Theatre with over 40 high school girls between the ages of 11 and 14 in attendance along with their parents or guardians.
It is believed that if more women and girls enter the ICT sector, which is traditionally dominated by men, the country will have an extended pool of talented and innovative young people who are capable of transforming Guyana into a digital savvy society.
Public Telecommunications Minister, Catherine Hughes; Head of the University of Guyana Computer Science Department and Lead Instructor for Guyanese Girls Code, Penelope Defreitas; CARICOM ICT4D Deputy Programme Manager, Jennifer Britton; and NCERD IT Coordinator, Dr. Marcia Thomas were among key female leaders in Guyana’s ICT sector present during the launch.

Overflowing with excitement, Minister Hughes said the response to the 12-week course was overwhelming, explaining that initially, the Ministry and its partners were targeting 20 girls but over 40 girls from various secondary schools in the country responded to the call.
Minister Hughes said her Ministry is working closely with the University of Guyana and the Education Ministry to break down the societal barriers that discourage girls and women from venturing into the field of ICT, and the Guyanese Girl Code course is just one of several initiatives.

When the Public Telecommunications Ministry hosted its first Hackathon in 2016, only males participated, and again they dominated in 2017, with only two females participating in the Hackathon, Minister Hughes pointed out. It is hoped that with the launching of programmes such as Guyanese Girls Code, more women and girls can become active players in the world of ICT.

“You are the chosen generation. You are the chosen generation. You guys are going to transform Guyana with how you use and promote ICT,” the Public Telecommunications Minister told the girls present.

In developed countries like the United States of America (USA) and Canada, many women are sitting at the helm of ICT-driven companies and cooperation, she noted. “They are engineers, they are the computer specialists, and they are the chief executive officers,” she further posited.

At Google, an American multinational technology company that specialises in Internet-related services and products, and Facebook, an American online social media and social networking service company, women serve in critical areas, Minister Hughes added while pointing out too that Pepsi and Occidental Petroleum Corporation are both headed by women.

However, she said the Caribbean is lagging behind, noting that she is the lone female minister in the region that is responsible for ICT related sectors.
Cognisant of the current challenges, the Public Telecommunications Ministry will be training more women and girls in the field of ICT. As the course kicks start, she is urging all the participants to make full use of the opportunity.

“Don’t sit quietly and you’re not too sure, and you don’t know, ask questions…I urge you to take every advantage of this awesome opportunity,” she urged.
Like Minister Hughes, CARICOM ICT4D Deputy Programme Manager believes that as the world advances in the area of digital economy, CARICOM countries appear to be falling behind. More Guyanese and other CARICOM nationals need to acquire the skillset needed to effectively participate in the ICT world.

Many women, she said, have had their progress in the field stymied because of myths that tell them they are not smart enough and lack the capacity to be an effective player. But this, she told the girls, are far from the truth.

Defreitas told the participating ICT specialists from the University and the Ministry, along with some of the best and brightest students from the Department of Computer Science, that UG will aid in the facilitation of the course.

Approximately 40 per cent of the course will be theoretical, the lead instructor said while adding that the majority of the course will be practical-based. It was explained that for the theoretical aspect of the course, focus will be placed on the pioneers within the sector, software and hardware, while practical activities will be based on BBC Micro Bit – ARM-based embedded system designed by the BBC for use in computer education. At the end of the 12-week course, participants will be issued with certificates of participation.