HTVW&Y Steps Up For Women ICT Summit 2014

Nigerian Women under the umbrella of High-Tech Centre for Nigerian Women and Youths (HTCW&Y) are coming together to channel a noble agenda for tackling the nation’s collective security challenges.

Dr. (Mrs.) Wunmi Hassan, president and chief executive officer of the non-governmental body, in a statemen said that, “a woman taught and involved in this kind of opportunity and initiative is a potential asset to our national development”.

Theme of the Summit which holds from September 2nd to 4th, 2014, for various categories of women across the country, at Global Distant Learning Institute, opp. Ministry of Finance Hqtrs, Abuja, is: “Women and National Security: Utilizing ICT for Community Policing and Self Actualisation”.

Hassan added that the Summit will expose women to security challenges in Nigeria and the need to actualize their potentials using ICT tools for development, while taking cognizance of their corporate roles in community policing for a safe society and family protection.

She listed the Summit’s sub- themes to include, Nigeria’s security challenges: Issues and Options for women and families; Promoting involvement of women in community policing and ICT Applications to address national security and community policing techniques.

Others are, Role of Media in Managing Security Challenges; ICT for wealth creation and women’s entrepreneurial development and Workshops – Mobile apps, social media (facebook, gmail account, blogs and website design).

Speaking on the objectives of the Summit, the President/CEO said it is meant to formally sensitize Nigeria women on the issues, challenges and concerns about security in the country; to open the mind of women to ICT tools available for domestic and community policing purposes; to encourage women to get involved in community policing for the security of their families and society and to expose the participants to ICT options for making a living in a knowledge economy for sustainable development.

She listed expected participants to include, women from ages 18 years and above, who are: Policy Makers and Female Parliamentarians; Public Sector Personnel (Federal, State and Local Government), Organised Private Sector, Business Women, NGOs and Civil Societies, Academia and Professional Bodies.

Other will include Female Students (Undergraduate and Post graduates); as the delegates will feature on Panel Discussions, Hands-On Training and exposure to mobile ICT and security Apps development, Models for Safety and Community Policing strategies, Group / Syndicate Projects, ICT Campaign / Walk for Life and High Tech Annual Awards 2014 for Women Entrepreneurs and Innovators in Nigeria and ICT Industry.

The High Tech Women Centre for Nigerian Women and Youths is a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGOs) established and incorporated under Act 1, 1990 Part C of the Corporate Affairs Commission, to train, empower and build capacity in women and youths in Information Communications Technology (ICT) across Nigeria.

With the realisation of the vast gap and digital divide which changing information communications technologies (ICT) around the world bring and the challenges these have brought to developing countries, information and knowledge sharing or dissemination has become a more pressing problem for the women-folk and younger ones in Africa, especially in the West African region.

Hence the beginning of an initiative by a Ghanaian woman called Ghanaian High Tech Women in the early 2000.