The Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services has signed a memorandum of understanding with youth development programme the TechnoGirl Trust that will result in the provision of support for ten young female learners under the programme every year over the next five years.
The five-year partnership will facilitate cooperation and coordination efforts within the information and communication technology sector and promote and enhance the developmental needs and skills shortages of female learners from rural and previously disadvantaged communities.
TechnoGirl is a flagship programme of the Department of Women in The Presidency, in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund, the Department of Basic Education, the State Information Technology Agency and the TechnoGirl Trust.
The programme aims to expose young students from rural and disadvantaged communities to scarce science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem) careers to motivate them to pursue careers that are in demand in the economy and where women are underrepresented.
This initiative identifies high school girls between the ages of 15 and 18 from disadvantaged rural and urban communities, who are performing well academically.
The programme has three components.
Job shadowing and digital learning is implemented on a structured and systematic basis over a period of three years, with Grade 9 girls placed at a job shadowing host organisation.
They are required to complete job shadowing or digital learning programmes, which include structure coding and robotics at a host centre over three consecutive school holidays each year for three years, until they pass Grade 11.
Through a mentorship system, the girls are guided to make informed career choices, with the emphasis on the Stem careers to help the students link what they learn at school with the skills required to succeed in the working world.
Following this, the girls enter the alumni phase of the programme from Grade 12, where they receive continued support in various forms during their studies and access to job opportunities in their chosen field of study.
Since its inception, over 11 000 young women have transitioned through the programme.
Telecommunications and Postal Services Deputy Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams, who has assumed the role of TechnoGirl brand ambassador, says she will mobilise financial and material support for the implementation of various components of the programme, including the job shadowing, digital learning and skills development.
“We are doing lots of things in our corners, but these things are not coordinated. “As a result, we are not really contributing towards the realisation of the targets we have set for ourselves. We have to make sure we are working together,” she concludes.