Women in Tech Groups & Communities in Africa

Women in Tech groups is a phenomenon that has been present as early as the 19th century, women have constantly been involved in the tech community though it can be argued that there is visibly a more male to female ratio in tech organizations. This scene has since changed dramatically with an increase in the number of females interested in coding and programming. 

An example of such early innovative input into the tech communities was in the 19th century by English Mathematician Ada Lovelace who created the first computer program. She has since been respected in the tech community especially by women in tech groups as the first Woman computer programmer. 

 The Women Empowerment program of 2001 brought with it a meteoric rise in the number of schemes aimed at empowering girls and women in different sectors of the economy. Today there are a lot of Women who have cofounded or founded a company (Femtech), women in tech summit, women in technology events, women in tech conference as well as women in tech day.

This article will focus on various female tech communities spreading innovation around the continent and raising a new generation of power women. 

Female/Women In Tech Groups and Communities

Please, the list we’ve been able to gather is only narrowed down to female communities in Africa, more focused to Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa.

Women in Technology in Nigeria (WITIN) 

The non- profit organization “Women in technology in Nigeria” created in 2002 is one of the largest community of women in tech.  

WITIN as it’s also known is focused on creating innovative opportunities for advancement of women and girls interested in tech. The tech organization achieves its aim by constantly hosting WITIN talk events, partnerships and sponsorships of projects.  

 Women in Technology in Nigeria is focused on closing the gender divide in the Science and Technology sector in Nigeria. WITIN groom girls in the world of Tech by offering job shadowing programs, digital skills workshops and boot camps.  

 A highlight of the organizations contribution to the tech sector is its yearly girls in ICT events. 

Afro Tech girls  

The under representation of women in the field of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics also known as STEM led to the creation of the non- profit organization Afro Tech girls in 2015.  

 The vision of the founders was to increase the participation of young girls and women in Tech communities. 

 The Afro tech girls organization is focused on achieving this vision, they host a summer bootcamp which is aimed at bringing STEM training to every girl in Nigeria. 

Pwani Teknowgalz 

The Kenyan based tech community “Pwani Teknowgalz” was created in 2015 by Ruth Gaveke.  

 The tech community has proved to be a force to be reckoned with in the Kenyan community, they are constantly in the cycle of equipping girls and young women from Kenya with skills in Technology. 

 The organization believes that bridging the gender divide in the Tech community would lead to an immense increase in development in the digital economy. 

Akirachix 

The Karen Nairobi, Kenyan based female Tech community is known for their strong belief “ young women are the solution we seek in tech innovations and leadership “. 

The program which began with a group of Kenyan female software engineers aiming to level the technology field has since metamorphosed into a widely acclaimed training program for girls and young women. 

The core program of the Akirachix organization is the codeHive program which trains women and young girls yearly for a duration of nine months teaching them programming, graphic design and tech soft skills.  

 This program has grown by leaps and bounds to an Akirachix campus, housing and providing all basic necessities to girls while training them, this has all helped in creating the new generation of girls who code in Kenya. 

 You can learn more about Akirachix at  CLICK HERE 

GirlHype 

The South African based non-profit organization ‘GirlHype’ was founded in 2003 by Tech enthusiast, Baratang Miya. The sole purpose of the organization was to empower women and girls to pursue a successful and lasting career in the tech industry. 

 GirlHype is an official ambassador for Technovation in South Africa. GirlHype through Technovation challenges 10- to 18-year-old girls to build a business plan and mobile plan that will offer a solution to a problem in the community. Since 2009 over 10,000 girls have participated in this event from over 70 countries. 

You can learn more about GirlHype at CLICK HERE 

She code Africa  

Founded by Ada Nduka Oyom with the aim of “creating an Africa where women are equally represented across all career roles in technology “, the non-profit organization “She Code Africa” provides an in-depth mentorship program to African girls. 

The she code Africa organization has branches in various campuses in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and Cameroon. The organization currently has 8500+ members and keepS growing. 

 She code Africa’s hosts an annual summer code camp across Africa to nurture girls and women in tech. 

 You can learn more about She code Africa (SCA) at CLICK HERE 

Who are the biggest women in the tech world?

Whenever the term “technology” is mentioned the first words that come to the mind are innovation, progress and connectivity. Presently, Technology influences every aspect of life with new innovations constantly being made and modified. The feat which technology has achieved are astronomical and constantly pushes towards the realm of the impossible.

The world-wide increase in the area of technology or what can be called the “tech boom” era has not left Africa behind in various innovative advancements and development which can be proved via the increase in number of tech organization start-ups and women or Girls who code. In sub-Saharan Africa, women make up only 30% of the professionals in the tech communities. Despite the fact that there are still fewer women in tech groups, we cannot deny the fact that there has been an overall improvement in the past few years.

Below are a few women at the fore front of tech advancement and who have constantly pushed the game to greater heights.

1. Whitney Wolfe Herd

The CEO and founder of Bumble, a dating app she launched in 2014 after having left Tinder, a company she helped build up and then sued after suffering sexual harassment there.

2. Kelly Steckelberg

Steckelberg is holding the position of chief financial officer of Zoom Video Communications since 2017. Prior to that she was the CEO of dating site Zoosk.

Find out about Women in Africa who Founded, co-founded great startups in Africa serving the rest of the world Here

HOW DO YOU START A FEMALE IN TECH GROUP?

Starting a female in tech group might sound like a difficult task especially with the low percentage of women in the tech sector. This section highlights easy steps to starting a female in tech group easily

#1– interview pre-existing female tech groups

Visit any other female tech community to gain knowledge from their experience. If possible shadow or ask for an interview as this will help in gaining tips on what to do in order to prevent mistakes.

#2- Assess your target

Determine your target and which women you want to attract or be part of the organization. After determining your target group, you should enlist their help and pitch your idea of the tech organization.

#3-Plan an inaugural event

The first of your organization are always a huge feat hence the inaugural of the female tech company should be planned perfectly. planning the inaugural event will include finding a venue, a speaker and drafting invitation mails.

#4-Market your event and network

Create a compelling event flier to promote your event both online and physically. Send mails to various influential tech figures especially females in the tech sector. Use social media to promote the event aggressively, try to connect with other females in tech groups as this will make your journey easier.

#5-Promote the female tech group

After the inaugural event you will be able to determine people that will be instrumental to the growth of the group. Enlist them and decide your first volunteers. Work together with the new volunteers and attendees of the event to promote your organization.

What is the role of women in technology?

from time immemorial it cannot be denied that women bring a special type of energy into every sector they decide to venture into. The tech sector has been heavily impacted by this special effect women bring. Few of the roles played by women in technology are

Web developer

Various summer code boot camps are aimed at teaching girls to code, this has led to an increasing no of web developers. Web developers are tasked with building the creative part of a website using computer code.

Software Engineer

With the likes of Kimberly Bryant CEO of Black Girls Code championing this sector, there has been a steady rise in female software engineers. They design and program system software. Female software engineers apply the principles of engineering towards creating of a system or app software.

INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY MANAGER

IT Managers are also known as Chief Information Officers (CIOs), Chief Technologist Officers (CTOs) or IT directors. They are responsible for general performance of the electronic networks. The overview of their job is ensuring that all the electronic system improve productivity in the organization.