The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of ICT, Dr.Amina Zawedde has implored to try out their luck and this way, they can ably scale heights in the ICT sector just like she has done.
She was speaking to female students of Kololo Secondary School who are studying coding and robotics facilitated by the Uganda Communications Commission on Thursday as the country commemorated the International Girls in ICT Day.
“I have come as the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of ICT who is a lady to show students that we lead by example that they too can become permanent secretaries but also scale the heights in ICT. Anybody can do it as long as they have belief and faith in themselves, hard work and use all opportunities available,”Dr.Zawedde said.
“You(girls) can ably do ICT, get a PhD in Computer Science so as long as you believe in yourself.”
The Permanent Secretary said the Ministry of ICT will continue taking the digital agenda forward as one of the ways to bridge the digital divide.
“The digital transformation roadmap launched last year focuses on infrastructure like school labs, connectivity in all areas of the country and affordable devices, taking as many services online, cyber security, data protection and privacy to ensure we build systems that are secure and trusted as well as creating awareness on how people to handle technology in a safe manner.”
“The other area is digital skilling to put up and support programs which are in line to skill people in the ICT sector.”
The Ministry of ICT Permanent Secretary insisted that in all these programs, girls and women are prioritized to ensure they fully participate as a way of bridging the digital divide.
The Kololo Secondary School headmaster, Edward Kanoonya said the commemoration of the day at the school will help deepen the need to promote technology careers for the girl child.
“We are used to the saying that when you educate girls, you have educated the nation. When girls embrace ICT, the nation has embraced ICT. Therefore, empowering girls in ICT is crucial for bridging the digital gender gap and ensuring equal opportunities for all,” Kanoonya said.
“ICT is becoming an international language and it is a key, a gateway and an opener. ICT is found virtually in all fields. Let us embrace the digital movement.”
He urged teachers to be intentional in creating a supportive environment for the girls to excel in ICT .
