The Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) has restated its commitment to bridging the gender gap in the tech sector.
President and council chairman, NBCC, Bisi Adeyemi, stated this at the chamber’s international women’s day event with the theme, ‘Embracing Equity’ held in Lagos.
According to her, the chamber was delighted to join the global community in celebrating the achievements of women in the social, economic, cultural and political sectors worldwide.
“We cannot ignore the barriers that women continue to encounter. Equity implies fair treatment, equal access to opportunities and advancement for everyone and the process of identifying and removing the barriers,” she said.
She explained that the sub-theme of this year’s International Women’s Day, ‘DigitALL: Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality’ cannot be more apt, stressing that innovation and technology are transforming societies, breaking down barriers and creating opportunities for women and girls.
“Attention is being drawn to the significance and we must ensure that women and girls are not left behind in the digital transformation and that they have equal access to the resources they need to succeed.
“In pursuit of the agenda to bridge the gender gap in the tech sector, we launched the NBCC Tech Academy in December 2021. The first cohort of women (and men) graduated in November 2022 and the second cohort kicks off on March 23, 2023,” she stressed.
The deputy country representative, UN Women Nigeria, Mr Lansana Wonneh said, the theme highlights gender equity in all aspects of life, including education, employment, healthcare, politics and social norm.
He emphasised that this is a call to action to ensure that women and girls have equal opportunity and access to resources and to dismantle systemic barriers that prevent them from achieving their full potential.
He pointed out that, “for too long, we have been talking about gender equality and this year we are embracing equity, as that is about creating an enabling environment that empowers women and girls to participate fully in the public and private sector.
“The theme for this year is particularly important for the chamber’s mission, which talks about women in entrepreneurship dominating the private sector in Nigeria and study shows that women have the same objectives and drive to run businesses as the male counterpart.”
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