Busia,

Saturday, March 17, 2023

K.N.A

By Peter Okeka

Women in Busia County have been urged to embrace technology as a way of curbing and solving daily society challenges and problems.

Speaking during the roll out of an empowerment programme under an umbrella “Border Hub,” Busia CEC for Finance, ICT and Economic Planning Topister Night Wanyama said she was committed to ensuring that women and young girls are at the forefront of embracing technology.

“We want our girls and teen mothers to be part of technological innovations. I urge all women to embrace this as it is of great importance in the coming days,” stated Wanyama.

In a move to align with the theme of this year’s International Women Day (IWD), Technology and Innovation for Gender Equality, Wanyama promised to partner with Young Women Founders so as to bridge the gap of women in ICT.

“We will ensure our programmes as a county, align with those of Young Women Founders so as to reach as many women as possible,” noted Wanyama.

She further stressed on the need of educating young women citing lack of knowledge as the major cause widening the gap of women in innovative technology.

“We are doing capacity building as we educate our women to be innovative. We want to bridge the gap by making them knowledgeable,” she said.

Roseline Nelly Wandaki, founder of Friendly Innovative Development Solutions (FIDS), a Community Based Organization, noted that they are targeting teen mothers and giving them hope through innovative technology.

“As an organisation, we empower teenage mothers by teaching them to be innovative,” said Wandaki adding that they also discourage suicides, early pregnancies and assist those in depression.

Her sentiments were echoed by Mariam Murunga, founder member of Young Women Founders Network and Gloria Moraa, Western Region Trainer from Ajira Digital who said their aim is to address issues in the community that can be solved using technology.

“We are trying to counter problems in society using technology and empower young women on different digital literacy skills used to contribute to economic impact in society and be in a position to compete on international levels,” stated Moraa.

Courtesy K.N.A