By Wezzie Gausi:
In the realm of Information, Communication Technology (ICT), a domain traditionally dominated by men, women forging their paths are scarce.
This trend is exacerbated in nations like Malawi, a least developed country, where women and girls face formidable obstacles navigating the predominantly male landscapes such as ICT.
Often, these women encounter significant resistance, with barriers attempting to stifle their ability to showcase their talents in the field.
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However, there is a gradual shift. Malawi is now witnessing the emergence of women making strides in the ICT sector, marking a notable change in the once male-dominated landscape.
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This is the story of Alice Ndau. In 2019, at age 19, Alice had just trodden one of her fears of making it in the ICT sector when she graduated from the Technical and Entrepreneurial Vocational Education and Training (Tevet) Solar Energy and Ecology Institute in Nkhatabay.
The fear of joining a band wagon of unemployed graduates was imminent. But her obtained skill in solar photovoltaic installation was enough capital to establish her own business. She only needed to sell her skill to prospective customers.
Two years later, Alice became a proud co-owner of Echo Tech Solutions based in Mzuzu City.
“I did not expect that I could make it this far. I am simply living my dream. Many are the times that I felt like giving up but with passion and determination, I pushed myself forward. I proved to myself and many clients that ICT is not a job for men only,” Ndau said.
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Her story is similar to that of Caroline Nongwa. Caroline started a company called Star Ink at the height of the Covid pandemic in 2020.
Caroline and her friend developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) system which used WhatsApp to link buyers with sellers during lockdown.
“The AI system was programed to interact with people and do exactly what people command it to do. Customers could place orders using the system and have the merchandise delivered to their doorstep.
“Although we are past Covid, as a company we are still working on modifying our facility to reach many people. The only requirement that one needs to use the facility is having a phone that has WhatsApp,” Nongwa said.
Parliamentary Committee on Media and Information Technology Chairperson Susan Dossi said such stories were inspiring and could motivate girls and women to achieve anything they desire.
“These women need to be supported at all cost as they are in a male-dominated field. Organizations should fund their projects and this would propel growth of women in ICT,” Dossi said.
Chairperson for Women Caccus in Parliament Roseby Gadama said the women that parliamentarians will lobby for more resources going to women doing extraordinary things in the ICT sector.
Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (Macra) Director General Daudi Suleman said the gender gap in technology and cybersecurity fields has been a concern for many years.
Suleman said despite the increasing number of women and girls interested in pursuing careers in these fields, they face numerous challenges that hinder their growth and advancement.
“Studies show that women are underrepresented in the tech and cybersecurity industries and that, even when present, they face discrimination, bias and harassment.
“Therefore, it is crucial to bridge this gender gap and break the glass ceiling to ensure women and girls can participate fully in the technology sector,” Suleman said.
In August 2023, Malawi hosted its first ever Women in Cyber Conference that brought together women from across Africa.
Currently, only 13.8 percent of the population has access to the internet. As such, there is a need to increase human capital by ensuring that many people have knowledge about ICT.
ICT is one of the enablers of the Malawi 2063, a development blueprint aimed at making the country an inclusively wealthy and self-reliant industrialised upper-middle-income country by the year 2063.
