The Central Department for Digital Community Development at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) has organized two events to launch Qodwa-Tech initiative in Damietta and Port Said Governorates. The events were organized in collaboration with Misr Public Library and the National Council for Women and attended by officials from the Governorates, MCIT and the Library.
A session titled "Women's Empowerment and Digital Transformation" was held in Damietta, while in Port Said, a session titled “Economic and Social Empowerment of Women” was carried out to introduce Qodwa-Tech. The sessions reviewed the key pillars of the initiative, including empowering women and girls economically and socially capitalizing on ICT, and focusing on representing women in the informal economy sector, working in handicrafts and traditional industries. Other pillars include promoting entrepreneurship among women and building their capacities in ICT to achieve financial inclusion and the transition towards a digital society where gender equality and equal opportunities are respected.
The sessions introduced the social media marketing and e-commerce training programs organized as part of the initiative and the new opportunities and capabilities that Qodwa-Tech enables to cover the needs of female entrepreneurs. The initiative features seminars, workshops and advanced sessions in digital marketing to enable women to open new online markets, helping maintain business continuity and sustainability. In addition, the sessions highlighted the selection criteria of participants and the stages of the initiative, starting with the electronic registration and ending with the selection of female leaders to train craftswomen and small business owners.
Moreover, the sessions discussed the Digital Citizenship Initiative the objectives of which align with women’s digital empowerment. The initiative involves educating women about the basic skills of digital citizenship, with the aim to help individuals, especially women, cope with the digital transformation. The Digital Citizenship Initiative, also, includes raising awareness of the necessary tools and means of protection in the cyberspace, and how to prevent potential cyber risks. The aim is to create a generation aware of its responsibilities and rights in a digital world and facilitate people’s safe access to and effective use of information.
The sessions shed light on financial inclusion and its role in facilitating the access of individuals and owners of small-scale projects to digital financial services in a way that caters to their needs and helps promote a responsible and sustainable digital economy.
Launching the initiative in different governorates reflects MCIT keenness to invest in women through training programs to build their digital capacities and preserve traditional crafts, helping cover the social and economic needs of craftswomen and leveraging ICT solutions. Qodwa-Tech activities align with the rapid advances in e-commerce and the digital world, and are in line with MCIT strategy for attaining digital transformation.
