Impact Stories from Professional Growth Policy Area
18 TechWomen alumnae attend Microsoft Ignite 2019
Fellow(s): 18 TechWomen Alumnae
Country: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Nigeria, Tajikistan, United States, Uzbekistan
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
This month, 17 TechWomen fellows and Impact Coach Maryann Hrichak came together at Microsoft Ignite 2019 in Orlando for a week of skill-building and networking. Fellows from Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Nigeria, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan spent the week exploring 1,000+ deep dive sessions and 200+ workshops spanning the field of IT. Fellows of Algeria Ouafa Benterki (2012) and Fatima Zohra Benhamida (2017) were included as featured speakers.
This is the second year that IIE has partnered with Microsoft, who this year provided full registration for fellows and mentors to attend the annual conference. After attending Ignite last year, Ouafa was named a Microsoft Regional Director, becoming the first Algerian and first African woman to occupy the role. At this year’s Ignite, she presented on her career in tech in her session “From CEO to Microsoft Regional Director: my journey as a woman in tech from Algeria.” Ouafa also participated in a panel discussing best practices on raising the next generation of diversity and inclusion tech leaders. Fatima led a session titled “How volunteering and mentorship pays more than your regular job.”
During the week, IIE organized TechWomen meetups during which alumnae came together to share professional updates, reflect on TechWomen memories and discuss their Ignite highlights.
Report Date...: 11/19/19
Fellow featured as inspiring leader in STEM
Fellow(s): Bernadette Kargbo
Country: Sierra Leone
Cohort: 2018
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth
This month, 2018 fellow Bernadette Kargbo was featured by Nsesa Foundation for her work in civil engineering and her passion for investing in and mentoring girls and women. Nsesa, a STEM non-profit that educates and trains youth in Africa, features leaders in STEM fields for their ongoing “STEM Wow” series.
In her interview, Bernadette spoke about her journey to becoming station manager for Sierra Leone Water Company and providing safe access to drinking water for 25,000 people. She discussed her work as a project engineer for UNICEF’s WASH in Schools project, which focuses on providing water and sanitation facilities to over 200 schools across Sierra Leone. When asked about her greatest achievement, Bernadette said, “…my greatest achievement is my ‘transformed mindset.’ A greater credit goes to the TechWomen program that avails guidance and opportunities for me to maintain my passion and strengthen my scientific human capital.”
Report Date...: 11/11/19
Fellow’s company joins UN group committed to gender equality
Fellow(s): Aina Dosmakhambet
Country: Kazakhstan
Cohort: 2019
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
This week, it was announced that 2019 fellow Aina Dosmakhambet’s coding education company was admitted as a member of Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEP), a joint initiative of the UN Global Compact and UN Women. Out of 2660 companies with WEP status, only 13 are from Kazakhstan.
Companies that are approved for WEP are committed to gender equality in the workplace, taking measurable strides to increasing equity and inclusion through their services. Aina is the CEO of Method Digital Education, an Almaty-based IT school that provides education for both children and adults in coding, web design, game development, data analysis and more. Their Girls Coding Class provides a space for young girls to develop both their technical and leadership skills, and includes leadership lessons from women entrepreneurs and excursions to local IT companies to meet successful women in tech.
Report Date...: 11/11/19
Three alumnae teams awarded 2019 AEIF grants
Fellow(s): Chepkemoi Magdalene, Nazira Sheraly, Aiturgan Zulpukarova, Elena Chigibaeva, Gulzire Minbaeva, Fatima Abdulaziz Sule, Olayinka Ayo, Safiya Aliyu, Pamela Chukwumeka, Ijeoma Ezika
Country: Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria
Cohort: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
This week, it was announced that three TechWomen alumnae teams were awarded a U.S Department of State 2019 Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund (AEIF) grant. The alumnae projects, based out of Kenya, Kyrgyzstan and Nigeria, were selected out of more than 1,400 project submissions.
Kenya’s North-Rift Women in STEM Inclusion Project , co-led by 2019 fellow Chepkemoi Magdalene, will host bootcamps on coding and the digital economy for nearly 500 underserved women and girls in the North Rift region of the country. The team also plans to award 30 of the participants a year-long mentorship opportunity. Kyrgyzstan’s TechAim was created by 2016 fellow Nazira Sheraly, 2017 fellow Aiturgan Zulpukarova and 2018 fellows Elena Chigibaeva and Gulzire Minbaeva. The mentorship program supports women and girls, particularly those outside of the capital city, to grow and develop their STEM skills and expand their knowledge in business, leadership project management and more. MAAMI Nigeria, originally a TechWomen 2018 seed grant-winning initiative from fellows Fatima Abdulaziz Sule, Olayinka Ayo, Safiya Aliyu, Pamela Chukwumeka and Ijeoma Ezika, is a mobile health literacy program that aims to provide underserved mothers access to safe, relevant and customized pre- and post-natal health information.
Report Date...: 11/4/2019
Mentor(s): Heather Richbourg
Company: University of California, San Francisco
Mentor Type: Professional
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Professional Growth
Last month, TechWomen Professional Mentor Heather Richbourg was recognized with the UCSF Chancellor Award for Advancement of Women. Each year the award recognizes and honors one faculty, one staff and one student at UCSF who have demonstrated a commitment to diversity, inclusion and advancing other women in their field and beyond.
Heather is a NIH-funded postdoctoral researcher in the department of Orthopedic Surgery at UCSF, focusing on studying genetic variations contributing to craniofacial and brain defects during early development. This year, she mentored Emerging Leaders Hanan Khalil of Jordan and Rudo Siwela of Zimbabwe. In her UCSF video feature, Heather said, “I think it’s so important to promote women in sciences. I’ve always been so inspired to help other women when so many women paved the way for women like me to be able to do what I love and do great research.”
Report Date...: 11/4/2019
Fellow named Top 40 Under 40 in Kenya
Fellow(s): Cheryl Kerama
Country: Kenya
Cohort: 2016
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Professional Growth
Last month, 2016 fellow Cheryl Kerama was named to the Top 40 Under 40 list from Business Daily. The annual list features influential entrepreneurs, leaders and innovators who have changed the landscape of business in Kenya.
Cheryl, who holds a master’s in molecular cancer immunology and biotechnology, was most recently a regional trial manager at Johnson & Johnson. In her feature, Cheryl discussed her lifelong passion for science as well as her discovery of an altered gene that is currently being used as a platform for asthma research globally. She also spoke about the challenges of being a woman in science, recalling difficulties she faced when she was part of a team conducting Ebola vaccine clinical trials on children in Africa.
During TechWomen, Cheryl was mentored at Genentech and was part of the 2016 seed grant-winning initiative One Desk One Child.
Report Date...: 11/4/2019
Fellow inspires youth at Model United Nations gathering
Fellow(s): Sarah Abdallah
Country: Lebanon
Cohort: 2016
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
Last month, 2016 fellow Sarah Abdallah was invited to Dubai to deliver a keynote address at the Arab Youth International Model United Nations conference. The annual conference brings together youth throughout the Arab world, facilitating conversation on creating change and peace worldwide. Together, the young delegates debated global issues, created responses to global crises and participated in activities that celebrated cross-cultural exchange.
Sarah is the CEO of LIBRO, a company that addresses youth unemployment challenges in the MENA region by providing training, consulting and recruitment services for universities and companies in STEM fields. In her keynote, Sarah addressed the challenges youth face today, sharing specific setbacks she faced as a young person. She stressed, however, that young people have a powerful voice and a unique ability to create exponential change in their communities. “I explained how young people can turn their problems into opportunities,” she said. Sarah concluded her keynote with an activity called “Inclusion Starts with an ‘I,’” tasking each young person to write down an action they can take to make the world a better place. “I added in my own as well,” says Sarah. “I committed to support the youth of today in becoming the leaders and decision makers of tomorrow.”
Report Date...: 10/21/19
Fellows shares advice for women in tech on BBC Africa
Fellow(s): Sylvia Mukasa
Country: Kenya
Cohort: 2014
Policy Area(s): Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth
This week, 2014 fellow Sylvia Mukasa was a guest on BBC Africa, speaking about the hurdles women in tech face and sharing best practices for how women can thrive in a male-dominated tech environment.
Sylvia is the CEO of GlobalX Investments and GlobalX Innovation Labs, specializing in emerging enterprise technologies and supporting youth and entrepreneurs in learning 21st century skills. In her interview, Sylvia was asked about the challenges African women face in the tech world. “Organizations have not put in place policies that ensure there is a good representation of women, especially at senior and board levels” she said. “We need policies that are inclusive of everyone to ensure that women know they are protected and wanted in that space.” She concluded her interview with top tips for women in tech, encouraging them to expand their network and prioritize building their skills in order to become competitive job candidates.
Report Date...: 10/21/19
Fellow shares TechWomen experience on Algerian radio
Fellow(s): Soumaya Benbartaoui
Country: Algeria
Cohort: 2012
Policy Area(s): Professional Growth
Recently, 2012 fellow Soumaya Benbartaoui was invited to speak about her TechWomen experience and her work in international telecommunications on Algeria’s national radio station. Soumaya is currently a director of electronic certification as well as the vice chairman at the International Telecommunication Union. She also supports the Algerian chapter of Arab Women in Computing (ArabWIC) as their social media coordinator.
During the hour-long program, Soumaya spoke about the TechWomen program, her mentorship at Juniper Networks and how she implemented her learnings once she returned home. “I shared how shadowing my mentor helped me with management, leadership, negotiation and conflict management,” she says. Soumaya also spoke about how the TechWomen program built up her confidence, empowering her to apply to new leadership positions after the program.
Report Date...: 10/21/19
Alumnae initiative awarded grant from U.S Embassy Algiers
Fellow(s): Amel Djenidi, Salma Bekkouche, Fatima Zohra Benhamida
Country: Algeria
Cohort: 2017, 2018
Policy Area(s): Economic Impact, Education Diplomacy/Mentoring, Empowering Women and Girls, Entrepreneurship, Professional Growth, Youth Engagement
After TechWomen 2018, fellows Amel Djenidi and Salma Bekkouche wanted to continue working together. They began collaborating with 2017 fellow Fatima Zohra Benhamida, and together the three fellows conceived of Heya Caravan, a project that empowers girls and women through STEM education. This week, it was announced that they secured a grant from the U.S. Embassy Algiers’ Alumni Small Grant Competition, which will allow them to launch their project in 2020.
Heya (Arabic for “she”) Caravan will be a one-day training where STEM leaders will share their expertise with women and girls in sessions, workshops and panels. Through roundtables based on four themes — Know Yourself, Build your Skills, Build your Network and Build your Personal Branding – women and high school-aged girls will be supported in building both technical and soft skills. Heya Caravan will also offer six months of remote mentorship to attendees through monthly lessons and assignments on resume writing, networking, skill building and more. In the coming months, the fellows will work to establish additional partnerships and funding, and hope to launch Heya Caravan in 2020 in three cities throughout Algeria.
Report Date...: 10/14/19
