The dominance of men in the ICT field in Rwanda has been challenged by Ann Mei Chang, the senior advisor for Women and Technology in the US Department of State, saying girls can make a difference.
Mei Chang was speaking at a Networking Night organised by Girls in ICT Rwanda, a networking group for women, in Kigali.
“The importance of your career is to stay true to yourself, otherwise you will lose your identity as you try and merge with your colleagues. Information Technology is a male-dominated field, but not out of bounds to women,” Mei Chang said.
“Our aim is to see girls in Rwanda embrace information technology because that is the direction Rwanda is taking,” she said.
The networking event was meant to bring together women who work in tech and link them together.
Mei Chang discussed her career which includes 20 years of engineering and leadership experience in Silicon Valley.
Rwanda has been aiming to be a reputable technology hub in East Africa. Already the country is aiming to be the second country after Tanzania to switch to digital television broadcasting.
The country is also expecting a fibre link connection in the coming months from MTN Uganda, increasing the broadband connectivity in the country.
