Osun First Lady, Titilola Advocates Improved Women in IT World
By Olubunmi Badiora,
The wife of Osun State Governor, Chief Mrs. Titilola Adeleke has called on concerned stakeholders in information technology, to join hands in improving the standards of operations as a way to encourage women in the society to venture profitably into the field of technology as way towards a just society.
She said this in her address at the 9th National Conference of the Nigeria Women in Information Technology (NWIIT) held at the conference hall of the Leisure Spring Hotel.
Mrs. Adeleke who was represented by the wife of the Commissioner for Economic, Budget, Planning and Development, Mrs. Olunike Motunrayo Adeleke said the Westen World in the 21st century revolves round improved technology which in a way the Nigerian Women in IT has keyed into and this in a way has greatly impacted into transforming the female gender into veteran technologists around the world with best international skills.
She added that the State Government under the stewardship of Senator Ademola Adeleke has graciously supported the course of NIWIIT in the areas of registering over 50 IT participants of Women Professionals in both state and local government levels.
The Commissioner for the Ministry of Innovation, Science, Technology and Digital Economy, Hon. Maruf Dele Ayofe appreciated the Nigeria Women in Information Technology (NWIIT) for choosing Osun State as their venue for this year’s conference. He promised that the Ministry will continue to support the women wing of Technology in their activities.
Hon. Ayofe, therefore advised that NIWIIT should not see anything as a barrier to what they can still achieve through the association but rather they should use every opportunity available to them to take the association to an enviable height.
In her speech, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Innovation, Science, Technology and Digital Economy, Mrs. Olufunke Bukola Jolayemi who also doubles as the guest speaker at the conference emphasised that the work of collaboration and innovations are not just mere words, but they are powerful tools which their adoption would go a long way to catapult glaring landmarks.
The Permanent Secretary, who was represented by Director, Innovation and Science, Mrs. Lateefat Olanrewaju however noted that the present reality is that women remain underrepresented in the tech sector thereby occupying only a fraction of leadership positions and technical roles but added that women can change this narrative by shaping the future of women in IT through collaboration and innovation, by empowering women in technology.
According to her, “by empowering women, we are not only promoting gender equality but also tapping into a rich pool of talent, perspectives, and ideas, through initiatives like mentorship programs, and networking events thereby creating a supportive ecosystem that fosters growth, learning, and innovation”.
The President of NIWIIT, Mrs Bamidele Bayo-Osibo in her welcome address appreciates the state government for the warm reception and for all the things it has done and he is still doing in the area of information technology in the State.
She added that over one hundred secondary school students were trained in technological projects through NIWIIT in the State by students from the department of Electrical and Electronics, Obafemi Awolowo University.
Mrs Bayo-Osibo while congratulating the students, enjoined others to grab opportunities whenever it comes there way especially in the area of Information Technology.
There are panelists sessions where participants explained the importance of women in the technological sector and what could be done to bring in more women to participate. The sessions also looked at how young female students could be included in information technology by capturing them young through their various schools.
Projects done by Robo Girls, i. e. students selected from local governments across the State were showcased and 3 students were declared winners where Mr. Akeem Najeem took the first position with cash prize of N100,000, the second position goes to Aminat Oloyede with N75,000 cash prize and Mercy Adeloye came third with N50,000 cash prize.
The highlight of the conference was the dinner and awards night where the political head of the Ministry, Hon. Maruf Dele Ayofe was given an award of exemplary leadership in ICT alongside other recipients of various degrees of awards.