Women in IT is re-launching as a non-profit organisation (NPO).
The organisation, which is dedicated to developing the role of women in ICT fields, registered as an NPO last year and has numerous areas of focus in its development work, says Amory Somers Vine, senior marketing manager at Dimension Data, and Women in IT spokesperson.
"The first focus is looking at how we can influence the younger generation, helping them to see tech as an exciting career choice, and to see that they can have a tech- or business-oriented career," she explains. In order to achieve this objective, Women in IT facilitates talks and workshops for high school girls, Somers Vine adds.
The organisation also runs a bursary programme, which offers funding to financially disadvantaged but determined girls who are entering their last year of full-time study in ICT-related fields. Recipients of the bursaries are provided with access to psychometric testing and career counselling to help them develop their goals and objectives. Since 2005, Women in IT has awarded 15 of these bursaries, the organisation says.
While its main focus is on the younger generation, Women in IT also holds networking events for women already in the industry, aiming to strengthen relationships and provide opportunities for mentorship. Currently, these events are held in Johannesburg, but "depending on uptake and interest, we would love to expand these events to other regions, especially Cape Town and Durban", says Somers Vine.
There is a need for this kind of project, she adds, because it is "well documented around the world that we're under-represented in the industry". Of those women who do work in ICT fields, most are in areas like marketing and HR rather than technical fields, she explains. Statistics reported by Microsoft support this: women comprise less than 15% of those taking computer science exams, and hold less than 22% of software engineering positions. Gender parity is even on the decline: 36% of computer science bachelor's degrees in 1983 were awarded to women, but this dropped to 21% in 2006.
Aside from the subtle biases that may hold women back, and the problem of the bulk of domestic and child-care labour still falling to women, confidence is a huge problem, explains Somers Vine. "Studies show that women are incredibly hard on themselves. We take the wind out of our own sails when we really could be doing so much more. The challenge we have to overcome is belief in our own ability."
Women in IT is "providing a platform, saying, if this is a field you want to be in, you're perfectly capable of doing that", she explains. With the organisation's 10th anniversary next year, Women in IT is looking to increase its impact by growing its membership and the number of bursaries it provides. "We want to stand up there at the 10-year mark and say, look at this, this is really amazing," Somers Vine concludes.
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