The IT sector is the most promising one and the EU towards 2020 will need about 1 million IT specialists. In this connection, the Moldovan women are urged to choose a career in this sector as the salaries here are higher, while the development opportunities are huge. The issue was discussed in a forum entitled “Women in the information and communication technology sector” that was held in Chisinau on November 3, IPN reports.
The forum forms part of the GirlsGoIT initiative, which has among partners the UN Women, e-Government Center, TEKEDU, Novateca and the Association of ICT Companies (ATIC). In the opening of the event, Abayomi Ogundipe, TEKEDU and GirlsCoIT manager, said the promotion of women in the IT sector is a world trend and the goal of the forum was to gather together the women, authorities and civil society organizations so as to discuss the policies needed to actively engage the women in this sector. A country can develop if it is inclusive, while women’s inclusion in the information technology sector is necessary. For the purpose, a summer camp in IT for girls was staged in summer. As a result, the participants developed six IT instruments and applications.
Participant in the summer camp Diana Marusic said that in 2013 she took part in an IT event where she was the only woman. An increasing number of projects to support the women in this sector have yet appeared. That event allowed her to know other girls with similar interests, with whom she now works on a number of IT projects.
Summer camp participant Corina Sclifos stated that the summer camp helped her realize that she liked IT and that she wants a career in this sector. She urged other girls to become involved in such projects as they have the chance to assert themselves in a very interesting area that enables them to be financially independent and to grow professionally.
Maria Toma, participant in the contest “Girls Technovation Challenge”, said that she and three women colleagues of her created an IT application that allows testing and treating water. This application earned her a trip to the U.S. and the top prize of the contest, of US$10,000. The developed application will be soon available free to all the IT users.
IREX Program Officer Sheila Scott said that the future will be digital and the people should get ready for it. Now the UN estimates that about 4 billion people do not use the Internet and the marginalized communities should be helped to assimilate information technologies. In Moldova, the Internet is used by about 86% of the people younger than 30 and only 20% of these use it for work. At EU level, it is anticipated that about 1 million IT specialists will be needed towards 2020. A shortage of such specialists is now experienced. Those who work in the ICT sector earn by 9% more money than in other sectors, while the profitability of the companies whose administration includes women is by 35% higher.
Ulziisuren Jamsran, Country Representative of UN Women in Moldova, emphasized the huge potential to use IT sector by girls and women with fewer opportunities or who are illiterate even in nowadays. Besides this, she mentioned that after Forum there will be developed recommendations for public policies that will be sent to Parliament, newly formed Government, private companies, CSOs, international organizations and all partners from IT sector.
The Moldovan authorities are urged to develop policies so as to attract women to the ICT sector and to invest in their education and to also present success stories of women who built a career in this sector to the general public.
