Bridging the Digital Gender Gap: Digital Literacy Skills Open Doors for Young Women in Tanzania
As a kid, growing up in Morogoro, Tanzania, Annagrace Malamsha was always attracted by science. Although many young girls in her elementary school seem to be away from the science discipline, she finds them fascinated by deep curiosity to understand how things work. There, she also began to develop love for ICT.
With her passion and school support, she eventually pursued her degree in Pharmacy University. Then, in 2023, she seized the opportunity to apply for the African Girls CAN CONE INTIATIVE (AGCCI) coding camp in Dar Es Salaam and was accepted, reinspiring her dream of exploring the field of technology.
“The AGCCI coding camp has changed lives and is a core part of what shapes my view of career in the field of technology,” Malamsha said.
Malamsha and Flora Kagoma are two of 100 shining examples, showing how the AGCCI “Binti Dijitali” program has an impact on young women and girls in Tanzania.
The United Nations Women and the Ministry of Education, in partnership with the Tanzanian continent and Zanzibar, the African Union Commission and the International Telecommunications Union (AGCCI), supports the International Telecommunications Union between 17 and 25 years old by the Belgian government’s target women and young women. Provide them with training on coding and digital literacy.
During its first phase (2018-2021), the initiative empowered more than 600 participants from 32 African countries to engage in careers and innovation in ICT. Building on this success, the second phase was funded by the Belgian government and implemented in collaboration with schools, NGOs, private sector organizations and government agencies, expanding its influence in 11 countries, including Tanzania, Benefit from over 1,000 girls covered by basic programming and hands-on digital training.
According to Ms. Lilian Mwamdanga, an expert on the United Nations women’s financial empowerment, the program aims to bridge the digital gender gap to ensure that women and girls can compete for the workforce in a rapidly developing world.
“Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is becoming a powerful tool to empower economics, create jobs, entrepreneurship and innovation opportunities. However, despite the rapid development of numbers, women are still underrepresented in the technology sector,” she said. “By empowering them with the skills they need, we can help bridge this gap and create a more inclusive digital economy where women and girls can contribute to driving innovation and economic growth.”
After coding bootcamp, Malamsha was able to leverage the skills she gained in her career as a pharmacist to focus more on digital marketing.
“I was able to use what I learned from the coding camp to be a freelance graphic designer, brand manager and social media manager.”
Since attending the camp, Annagrace has been seeking opportunities to give back to her community. Her initiatives include engaging in international campaigns that enable women to provide training in digital marketing. Currently, she is the co-founder of Sheworks Technology, a program dedicated to building digital clubs in secondary schools and providing basic skills to the next generation of innovators.
“I want girls to know that coding and working in the ICT field is not reserved for men,” Annagrace insists. “We have to challenge the status quo and resolve the gender gap, training courses at a time.”
Flora Kagoma, a 24-year-old electronics engineer at the University of Dar Es Salaam, joined the Binti Dijitali coding camp in 2023 to gain practical skills to solve real-world problems in Tanzania’s agriculture and energy sectors.
“I’ve always been interested in how technology solves everyday problems. But the camp has provided me with practical experience in building practical solutions and I realized that I can convey my passion for electronics to people to improve people’s lives,” she said.
During the two-week camp, she assembled a robot to realize a long-term dream. She also collaborated on a project targeting farmers’ challenges. This experience paves the way for other high-profile initiatives, including the smart energy system and AI-enhanced drone for early crop disease detection at Tavik 2024, which is in “Mama Samia Best Agriculture” Concept” won second place in the award.
Influenced by the camp, Flora now advocates the inclusion of young women in technological innovation by mentoring middle school students in ICTs in Arusha, Manyara, Tanga and Kilimanjaro.
As digital skills become the cornerstone of modern economies, initiatives like AGCCI are crucial to closing the gender gap in technology and enabling more women to become technology leaders. The program is currently in its third phase and will host additional coding bootcamps in 2025 to expand opportunities, empower more young women, and drive inclusive growth and innovation throughout Tanzania.
“Technology is a powerful tool for change; if we don’t bring young women to the ship, then we lack half of the potential of the country,” Flora said.
Distributed by Apo Group on behalf of United Nations Women – Africa.
