Shaping the Future: How Data Girl Technologies is Bridging the Gender Gap in STEM

By Boris Esono Nwenfor

BUEA, Cameroon – In a world where technology is increasingly shaping the future, Data Girl Technologies is at the forefront of empowering women and girls to step into the tech space. Through hands-on training, workshops, and innovative partnerships, Data Girl Technologies is providing young women with the tools they need to succeed in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Precious Natang, the Public Relations Officer of Data Girl Technologies emphasizes the importance of fostering female talent in a traditionally male-dominated field. "We are creating opportunities for women to gain entry-level jobs, internships, and even start their tech ventures," she explains. "Our mission is to help bridge the gender divide in the tech ecosystem."

Data Girl’s approach goes beyond traditional classroom training. It focuses on organizing workshops and conversations that address the unique challenges women face in tech. The organization’s workshops help women understand the importance of technology in the modern world and the diverse career paths it opens up. They also work closely with schools, universities, and other organizations to ensure that young women have access to valuable information and training.

“It’s not just about teaching skills; it’s about inspiring women to see the value of being in tech and taking advantage of the opportunities available in this space,” Precious adds.

In an exclusive interview with Pan African Visions, the Public Relations Officer expatiated on the work of Data Girl Technologies, the biggest challenges girls face when pursuing education in science and technology, and future projects of Data Girl.

What is the mission of Data Girl Technologies, and how does it contribute to promoting STEM education for girls?

Precious Natang: At Data Girl Technologies, we are fostering the next generation of female tech talent. What we do is we provide hands-on training for these women in various tech skills, which helps them to get entry-level jobs, get professional internships and also set up business ventures for themselves, thereby helping to bridge the gender divide in the tech ecosystem.

What are some of the biggest challenges girls in Cameroon face when pursuing education in science and technology?

Precious Natang: I think the biggest challenge is the lack of information. Many young women are not informed about the opportunities that lie in tech. Secondly, I'll talk about the fact that many of these women are afraid. They feel like tech is not for them, it's a thing for guys.

There's a particular way you have to dress, there's a lifestyle you have to possess, and many girls in our society today don't want to be known as nerds, to have data affiliation. So, they're just afraid, and most of the time they are not informed about the opportunities that lie. So that's challenging.

How can parents, schools, and communities work together to encourage more girls to take an interest in STEM fields?

Precious Natang: The first thing that parents, organizations, the community, and society can do to help these young girls pursue STEM careers is first of all to give them orientation. We have to create more spaces where women can talk about their experiences in tech. We have to talk about mentorship. Mentorship is very important.

When you're a young girl and you can see other people who are thriving in the space where you want to thrive, you feel like, okay, this is something that I can also do. So, if you see many women in this space doing amazing work, if you see many women in this space who are succeeding, and sharing their stories, many other young girls are going to find the means, to get into tech.

What specific programs or initiatives has Data Girl Technologies launched to support girls in STEM?

Precious Natang: For the last close to five years now that we've been existing, we've been running digital training. Some have been highly subsidized in the sense that we offer scholarships for these young women to come and study. So, through this training, we help them to get hands-on skills.

Most recently, we launched the STEM Rich Project, which is a project to empower 200 women in the South West region of Cameroon. This project has been running in the last year. And so far, we are in our third community, meaning that we have empowered 150 women and we'll be moving to the last community. That's a project that has come in place, to shed light, spread information, and help many young women, especially in rural communities, to come in contact.

Also, we have our yearly event that we organize, which is called the Women in STEM Conference. We started last year where we brought together young women, stakeholders, partners, and organizations that just support women in tech. This event is mainly to foster the next generation of women in tech talent. It's not training per se, but it's workshops, and conversations that concern women, addressing challenges that they are facing, just to help them, see the importance of being in tech and take advantage of the opportunities that lie in this space.

How does Data Girl Technologies collaborate with schools, universities, and other organizations to promote STEM education?

Precious Natang: One of the things we do is we go to the schools ourselves. We go present partnership opportunities. We tell them about what we are offering and we share with them what both of us can do and how we both can benefit, in helping to bridge the divide and share opportunities. So, we partner with universities, we partner with schools, we share opportunities with other organizations. We take part in the events of other organizations.

Days ago, we were, speaking at the Women Techmakers – it's an organization about women, supporting women's initiatives in tech in Buea. So, we partner a lot and we equally offer internship opportunities for universities that we partner with, because they come and learn for free in our institution. So that's how we collaborate with other organizations.

With the rise of digital learning, how is Data Girl Technologies using technology to enhance education for girls?

Precious Natang: All of our programs involve technology. One of the things that we do is that yearly we improve our programs. If we discover that currently in the market what is trending, for example, is AI, what is trending may be digital marketing, we do market research and look at the future of the market. We do a lot of research and we see what is in need and then we incorporate that into our programs and we train these young women.

This year’s International Day of Women and Girls in Science focuses on promoting inclusivity. What does this mean for your organization?

Precious Natang: Inclusivity for us means bringing everyone on board, regardless of background, regardless of your gender, regardless of your physical disability. So, to us, it's about not looking at where you're coming from, but looking at what we have to offer you.

How important is it to have more women representation in scientific research and innovation in Cameroon?

Precious Natang: I believe that women are the backbone of society and the future is female. So having women on board in research and innovation is very helpful. I'll give you a typical example. When we see the innovations that are being created for society, and a majority of the society is made up of women, we want people to consume products that they appreciate. You need to involve them in the creation process of these products.

So, innovation is one of those areas where women need to be part of. If you're carrying out research, trying to create maybe an AI to test breast cancer, to help every society, then you need the participation of women.

What future projects does Data Girl Technologies have to further support girls in STEM?

Precious Natang: We're looking forward to expanding this STEM research project. We're looking forward to expanding our training projects. And we're looking forward to collaborating with more international organizations to bridge the gender gap and foster tech talents for females.

How can individuals, government agencies, or corporate organizations support your mission?

Precious Natang: There are many ways to support Data Girl Technologies. If you want to support us, you can offer laptops. The STEM research project we are running is free. So, all we need is more equipment to go into these rural communities and train these women, those who have never come in contact with technology.

If you can offer a scholarship for a student, we have many young people that come, they want to learn. But sometimes they don't have these resources. They don't have enough resources like fees. They cannot pay. So, you can subsidize for some of them. And also, if you have great programs that you have, we have the platform, we have the audience.

But then sometimes we need the manpower. We need more people who have the knowledge and the technical know-how to train these women. So, if you can offer training, partner with us. And if you have other ideas that you want to share, we are always open. Just get to us through our email and then we can take the conversation from there.

What message would you like to share with young girls who aspire to pursue careers in science and technology?

Precious Natang: What I would say is, first of all, tech might look like it's a male-dominated field. But sooner or later, many women are going to overtake. So, you don't want to be left behind. Second of all, the first step to getting into tech is learning the skill. It's not a get-rich-quick scheme. It's a learning process. It's a journey that you're going to enjoy. So come and learn the skill. Once you learn the skill, there are opportunities in front of you that you'll be able to benefit from.