The Research Center for Feminist Action (CIPAF) of the Dominican Republic was one of three winners recognized at a ceremony in the South Korean city of Busan earlier today, Tuesday 28 October 2014, by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for promoting women’s presence in information, communication and technology (ICT) industries. These are the first awards of their kind. South Korea is currently hosting the 19th ITU Plenipotentiary Conference in the port city of Busan until November 7. Amparo Arango, representing CIPAF at the event, accepted the prize from the UIT Secretary General.
The Research Center for Feminist Action “improved the quality of life of girls by building their self-esteem, teaching them about collaborative work, leadership, and promoting gender awareness,” the ITU said.
CIPAF was recognized for its programs E-Chicas and Supermaticas STEM clubs for girls and young women to ensure that they are not excluded from areas of knowledge because of their sex, while helping fill the gap in professionals in studying math, science, engineering and technology, which affects the Dominican Republic’s competitiveness in the world economy. The clubs are committed to improving the quality of life of girls by building their self-esteem, teaching them about collaborative work, leadership, and promoting gender awareness. The girls receive special training including an introduction to robotics, electronics, coding, and tutoring support in math and science. The STEM clubs also aim to address girls’ retention in school and the problems of early pregnancy by teaching them about their sexual and reproductive rights, thus strengthening their self-awareness.
The other winners of the Gender Equality and Mainstreaming (GEM) Tech Award were UNESCO, iMerit Technology Services from India, Britain-based BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT, Telecentre.org Foundation from the Philippines, South Africa’s Association for Progressive Communications and the Federal Ministry of Communication Technology of Nigeria. They were chosen from 37 finalists from around 360 candidates recommended by 74 countries for the awards given in seven categories.
The Gender Equality and Mainstreaming (GEM) Tech Award seeks to create a platform for advancing women’s meaningful engagement with ICTs and their role as decision-makers and producers within this sector, according to the ITU.
The ITU is an information and communications arm of the United Nations that sets technological standards, allocates radio frequencies and satellite orbits, and works to improve the quality of communications services.
http://www.itu.int/en/action/women/gem/Pages/winners.aspx