By Ebunoluwa Sessou

Oreoluwa Lesi is the CEO, Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre, W.TEC, a non-profit organisation wired to build an inclusive technology ecosystem with the next generation of women. In this interview, she speaks on why women should be technology savvy.

What was it like setting up your organisation?

Personally, I set up a business typing essays for students while at the university and it struck me that technology afforded me the opportunity to earn money from the comfort of my room. I started thinking about how women should be leveraging technology to create more financial gains for themselves.
During my master’s degree programme in Information Systems, I saw from the research how women’s low use of technology and their participation in the technology sector was trailing far behind men’s.

I started to form an idea of setting up a center where girls and women could learn how to use computers and the Internet. It was that kernel of idea that grew into what the Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre, W.TEC, is today.

Our goal is for more girls and young women to be aware of, and consider careers in technology and the wider Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths, STEM. W.TEC seeks to support them as they progress on this journey.

We recognise that not every woman will want to work in technology, but due to the ubiquity of technology, most women will work with technology in one way or the other and so we want women to be confident users and innovators of technology, understanding how to successfully and safely integrate digital tools into their personal, professional and civic lives.

The programmes encourage more girls to pursue technology careers and support women (entrepreneurs and in civil society) to use technology confidently to increase their economic power and ability to speak about issues affecting their lives.  

Programmes include the She Creates Camp (a residential STEM camp for girls 13-17 years), W.TEC Academy (girls’ after school technology club for secondary school girls), Inclusive Technology for All – IT4ALL (STEAM clubs for children with developmental disabilities), MentorHer (for female Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths undergraduates) and SHE CAN WITH ICT (technology workshops for female entrepreneurs). Since 2008, we have reached 47,461 women, girls, boys and teachers.

How has the creation of W.TEC helped to drive the economy of Nigeria when it comes to market women?

We recognise that not every girl is going to want to pursue technology or the wider STEM as a career. Therefore, we believe that it is important to demonstrate how technology and innovation can support and promote the ventures that women are already engaged in and a major focus of this is our attention to female entrepreneurs.

SHE CAN with ICT focuses on increasing the number and viability of female-owned technology businesses by equipping female entrepreneurs to use technology strategically to leverage economic opportunities for their businesses. In 2023, with the support of ACT Foundation, we equipped 579 female entrepreneurs across the country with technology skills to boost their productivity.

While not solely focused on market women, the SHE CAN with ICT programme is targeted at all female entrepreneurs. Some cohorts of SHE CAN may focus on a specific industry or experience level.

We have given seed grants to some entrepreneurs to scale-up their business ventures. We have found that entrepreneurs who completed the programme have a greater understanding of leveraging technology and other digital tools to enhance their productivity and efficiency and reduce waste. They are better able to reach out to new customers and take advantage of alternative opportunities.

Is there collaboration with other women in technology to explore opportunities for SMEs?

W. TEC believes in the power and potential of strategic and well-aligned partnerships. Through partnering with other organisations and stakeholders, we have been able to contribute towards providing capacity-building opportunities for girls, women and other marginalised groups.

In the last two to three years, we have worked with or been supported by organisations such as ACT Foundation, Sickle Cell Advocacy and Management Initiative, SAMI, Ajoke Ayisat Afolabi Foundation, AAAF, International Women Society, IWS to reach more communities of women entrepreneurs.
In addition to these training opportunities, another key way to ensure that women-owned businesses are more profitable and sustainable is to compile and make available information about the unique and pervasive challenges that women entrepreneurs face.

To that end, W.TEC has produced factsheets on the number of women engaging actively with technology and publications, which explore women’s place within the Nigerian entrepreneurial landscape, including the impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on women in business and the workplace.

How is your organization wired in terms of deliverables?

Across our programmes and activities, we reached 4,077 girls, boys, women, young people with special needs in 2023.

Since its inception, W.TEC’s programmes have empowered 47,461 girls, women and young people with special needs to use technology confidently to increase their economic power and ability to speak about issues affecting their lives and pursue STEM careers.

Beneficiaries have created technology, such as apps, games, websites, films and other digital content, and learnt to use technology safely and productively for learning, leadership, entrepreneurship and professional development activities.

W.TEC has evolved into an evidence-based social enterprise that designs and implements high-quality programming, which complements and feeds into each other, taking girls with little knowledge of technology and equipping them with the necessary skills to become women working with, creating and engaging with STEM.

The latest evaluation of the She Creates Camp, one of our flagship programmes, which we have run since inception in 2008, shows that 67.7percent of alumnae surveyed stated that W.TEC camp encouraged them to pursue STEM career, 35.4percent of alumnae currently studying STEM degree at tertiary level, 56.9% of alumnae have used technology skills and knowledge to earn income, while the Camp helped 70percent of our alumnae develop more confidence.

Another one of our programmes is the Inclusive Technology for All (IT4ALL), which is a technology-based learning initiative, organised in partnership with the Children’s Developmental Centre (CDC) for students with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The IT4All programme seeks to use technology to encourage and direct the students’ creativity and improve their problem solving skills. In 2023, our programme evaluation showed that 74.3percent of the students could navigate the computer with no assistance. IT4ALL is also successfully supporting the students’ literacy and numeracy skills as evidenced by the 91.3percent who could identify numbers and letters with little to no assistance.

W.TEC’s steady progress has been recognised in Nigeria and beyond. In 2013, the Federal Ministry of Communication Technology selected W.TEC to design pilot technology clubs for girls across Nigeria, which reached over 1,200 girls attending 12 Federal Government Colleges across the 6 geo-political zones of the country.

In 2022, W.TEC received a special commendation from the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy in recognition of our work towards creating access to information and knowledge for marginalised groups. In 2022, I was invited to join the Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council, which is responsible for driving a culture of increased and more impactful STEM innovation in Lagos State.

In addition to our programmes, we continued to prioritise collaborations and conversations across the social sector. Through our various engagements and discussion platforms in 2023, we reached no less than 3,562 people.

How compassionate are you empowering young people and grooming them for leadership positions? And what is the future of SMEs with TECH?

Organisations and businesses that thrive in the long-term are the ones with competent and dynamic leadership. This means that there must be a continuous prioritisation of leadership grooming and preparation in organisations that want to continue to position themselves as the leaders in their industries.

At W.TEC, young people are the heart of our work. Most of our programmes are directed at them and are increasingly developed in partnership with them. As a result, we place great emphasis on developing the young people (mostly girls and young women) within our networks and communities. We recruit volunteers – mostly young people between the ages of 17 to 30 years – and provide training that equips them to facilitate or assist in our programmes. We also recruit our alumni as volunteer facilitators. This experience is valuable, because it both deepens their knowledge of the subject matters and also gives them experience teaching and speaking publicly.

What is your target for 2024?

In 2024, W.TEC will complete our new 5-year strategic plan. We will also engage in more frequent advocacy with government, corporate, community-based and other stakeholders about sustainable strategies to close the gender gap in STEM.

We will continue to educate and host conversations through our radio show and podcast, She Talks Tech.

In addition to our capacity-building work, we will be contributing more to the body of knowledge on best practices for engaging girls and women in STEM, so look out for our publications, including factsheets, infographs, articles and briefs.

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