Eersterust girls chosen for coding workshop

Sixty Nantes Primary School girls in Eersterust were chosen to attend a Microsoft coding workshop recently.

The grades 6 and 7’s will be trained by CodeJika as part of #MakeWhatsNext, Microsoft project that has upskilled over 293 600 young girls.

This lead to SA Women in ICT (SAWIICT) Forum recently launching Lift As We Rise initiative at Microsoft Policy Innovation Centre, Future Africa Campus at the University of Pretoria where Deputy Communications Minister Pinky Kekana was key speaker.

Partnering SAWIICT on the initiative were the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies, Microsof and Code.org’s YouthSpark.

“A lack of female representation means we are lacking the perspectives of half the world’s population,” Kekana said. 

“Increasing the participation of girls and women can help bridge this gap, which in turn will allow the workforce to access a treasure trove of untapped potential – and boost the region’s gender equality in the process.”

According to Microsoft, these coding workshops are free, hands-on sessions for girls aged 14–18 to understand why computer science is important, and how they can use computer science to do things they already love doing even better.

“During the Workshop, the girls got an inside peek at what it’s like to work in technology; learn how to pursue their passion, no matter who they are; and see that a successful career in technology is within their reach,” they said.

“Girls represent 52 percent of the total beneficiaries of YouthSpark,” they said. 

“We work closely with government not only to encourage youth to develop a keen interest in the ICT sector, but also to create jobs and equip these young people with the skills to make them more attractive to prospective employers.”

Kekana said: “Irrespective of where we live, we need to harness how these tools can improve the lives of South Africans.”

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