Johannesburg - Entrepreneur Faith Mangope has joined the 4IR movement. The broadcaster is supporting one of Africa's biggest digital skills initiatives, the SAP-led Africa Code Week, as the 2019 ambassador.
Mangope, who is actively involved in empowering African women and girls with digital skills, said there was still much work to be done in equipping women and youth with the information, skills and enthusiasm they need to be active participants in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).
“It’s no secret that women still lag behind men in digital and STEM-related fields, with only one in three people who report profiting from new technologies being a woman,” said Mangope.
“This deprives them of crucial access to information, education and participation in the global digital economy. Coding teaches you important critical thinking skills and empowers you to leverage the immense power of exponential technologies in the service of solving some of the pervasive problems in the world around us.
"I am honoured to be part of one of Africa's biggest digital skills development initiatives and look forward to working closely with SAP, Unesco and Africa Code Week partners to inspire a new generation of African youth with 21st century skills.”
Mangope is also a Washington Fellow and the founder of FTA Media Communications.
Her latest endeavour is the Faith Mangope Technology and Leadership Institute, which aims to educate, empower and equip African women and youth with skills and insights aligned to 4IR.
“Faith is one of our leading female voices and an inspiration to millions of young women,” said Sunil Geness, Director of Government Relations and CSR Lead at SAP Africa.
“Her work to bring more women and youth into the digital fold aligns perfectly with Africa Code Week’s ambitions to drive sustainable learning impact across Africa and instil digital literacy and coding skills in the next generation of African youth.”
Since its inception in 2015, Africa Code Week has engaged more than 4.1 million youth in 37 countries and trained more than 50 000 teachers, making a lasting contribution to empower the continent's growing youth population with critical digital skills.
The programme also enjoys the support of the German Development Corporation (BMZ), which through its eSkills4Girls initiative has offered grants to 37 organisations who have introduced more than 26 000 women and girls to coding skills in 17 developing countries.
“It has been a core focus of the programme to bring more girls into the digital fold by giving them access to digital skills training,” said Claire Gillissen-Duval, director of EMEA Corporate Social Responsibility and Africa Code Week Global Lead at SAP. “In 2018, 46% of our Africa Code Week participants were girls, pointing to a more equitable and inclusive future for the African digital economy.”
The 2019 Africa Code Week will take place in 37 countries in October, locally from October 4 to October 18.