By Prince Osuagwu

Intel Corporation, penultimate week, used the opportunity of the United Nations’ International Day of the Girl to expand its global commitment to furthering education for girls and women in Africa.

Intel says it believes that broader access to education for girls and women will significantly speed up social progress and help drive worldwide economic growth.

In Africa, Intel visited three schools on the continent to host talks about how important it is for girls to break the cycle of generational poverty and to interact with the girls by hosting a quiz and giving out prizes.

Intel paid visits to St Barnabas Secondary School in Johannesburg, Ruai Girls High School in Nairobi and Vivian Fowler Memorial College for Girls in Lagos where it invited notable Nigerian women in ICT like Engineer Florence Seriki, Managing Director, Omatek Computers, Ms Oreoluwa Somolu, Executive Director of W.TEC and Mrs Ufuoma Emuophedaro, Publisher, E-business life magazine.

The women took turns to educate and inspire about 200 teenage girls in Junior secondary classes to consider a career in information and communications technology.

In South Africa, the message from Joseph Nsengimana, Intel South Africa’s Education lead at the schools, was clear – when a woman is educated and schooled to develop a successful career, many of these very same girls and women will reinvest up to 90 percent of their income back into their communities. “Further, if we were to see 10 percent more girls going to school, the country’s GDP has the potential to increase by three percent.”

According to Nsengimana, “Intel has worked for decades to improve education around the world, if we can close the education gap with girls, we will have transformed their lives and the lives of everyone they touch.”

He noted that through access to technology, scholarships and community learning programs, Intel’s programmes such as Intel Learn, Intel Teach and Intel Easy Steps would provide girls and women with opportunities for quality education and personal growth. Intel’s programmes equip women with the access to the information they need to excel.

Intel said that in this increasingly global economy, it recognises that curiosity, critical thinking and a strong foundation in math and science are necessary for tomorrow’s workforce to compete for the high-tech jobs of the 21st century. It also added that with a 21st century skill set and a newfound level of confidence, girls and women can advance their ideas and personal drive to change their lives.