Durban - As South Africa celebrates national women’s month, it is important to remember that the country still faces a large gender disparity in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields.
In light of SA’s rumoured emerging ‘Silicon Valley’, it is much easier for women to pursue careers in tech and crack the inequality code, said the chief executive of HyperionDev, Riaz Moola.
Women account for only 13 percent of South African graduates in STEM, according to Moola. In addition to this, women were hit harder by the Covid-19 pandemic when it comes to jobs, even those in tech.
The effects of the pandemic were first-hand for Chanelle Bosiger. She lost her position as e-commerce sales manager at an online shop in April 2020. This retailer was negatively impacted financially by the lockdowns because it relied heavily on the tourism sector.
She attended a full-stack web development boot camp to further her passion for technology and alter her career path because coders are in higher demand as a result of the pandemic. Since then, Bosiger has found work again as a junior software engineer.
“Women are severely lacking in my field. As a woman, I wonder why this is still the case when tech is a field for everyone,” asked Bosiger.
Not only are the number of STEM jobs growing at a faster rate than other occupations, but these jobs continue to rank higher on the pay scale, too, said Moola.
This was the driving force behind Amy Marais' resolve to improve her technological proficiency. “I knew I needed to be in a field where the demand for work was high and ever-growing,” she said.
Prudence Mathebula, managing director of Dynamic DNA, stated that although IT organisations are looking for qualified female employees to address the gender gap and encourage diversity, the talent pool is still minimal.
“There are more career choices available to women now than ever before, allowing them to take charge of their own destiny. It is so important that women start to view their career in technology as a major life-changing opportunity,” said Mathebula.
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