Photo by Christina Morillo

Information Communication and Technology (ICT) has continued to remain a dominant force in the 21st century. With many business sectors tying its operational processes to the use of ICT, efficiency and productivity as well as the capacity of businesses to make informed market decisions, collaborate, and meet ever changing consumer expectations while improving their experience have continued to remain a fundamental driver of success for many businesses.

With the rapid growth of ICT, more and more women, especially Black women are not only exploring careers within the sector but also holding positions of importance. According to womentech.net, the U.S. Census data demonstrates that female workers have made enormous strides in the STEM workforce, growing from an 8% minority in 1970 to 28% of all STEM employees by 2019. (womentech.net)

With digitization on the rise in all sectors, economic activity has provided opportunities for Black women to push the technological boundaries and succeed in their various roles within the ICT field. Here are a few Black women who are not only making waves in the ICT sector but are worth celebrating for their accomplishments.

Aisha Bowe 

American Aerospace Engineer and founder & CEO of STEMBoard as well as the educational technology company LINGO that provides educational tutorials and access to online resources.

STEMBoard, her company was recognized on the Inc. 5000 as one of the rapidly growing companies. As one of the awardees of the 2024 Woman of the Year by STEM, and 2024 Luminary Award at Black Enterprise’s Women of Power Summit, she has grown through the ranks in her career journey in the field of aerospace engineering and continues to contribute her time and talent to the introduction and mentoring of young women in STEM.

Annie Jean-Baptiste

Head of Product inclusion at Google, who has grown from consulting jobs into communication roles as well as pioneering research initiatives. As a top executive of Google, Annie is at the forefront of initiating strategies that foster inclusion within the company. She is also spearheading design programs and processes that take into consideration the concerns of underrepresented persons. She continues to reaffirm her commitment to ensuring Google products are beneficial to all.

Edwige A. Robinson

One of the top women in Tech, Edwige Robison is the Senior Vice President of Network Engineering and Operations at T-Mobile. She currently spearheads a group of contractors and employees who are tasked with the designing, building and maintaining of T-Mobile’s 5G Network. With her capacity to instill operational efficiency thereby ensuring a resourceful organization, she is recognized as an “Awesome Black Woman Everyone Should Know” by Aleria Tech and as a role model for girls by 1 million STEM Women.

Inspiring the Next Generation of Black Female Tech Leaders

Considered as the fourth industrial revolution, Information Communication Technology (ICT) is becoming a diverse and dependent industry from which other sectors rely to achieve global advancement and innovation.

As an expanding industry, gender representation should be encouraged especially among women who constitute a disproportionately low representation in the technological workspace. Inspiring the next generation of female tech leaders requires a holistic approach that also factors into policy formulation. Below are some suggestions on how to inspire the next generation of female tech leaders.

Organize Educational Events and Activities

Schools, business communities, tech fairs, tech boot camps are great platforms to organize tech events that promote girls’ interest in technology as well as encourage attendance. Such events offer great opportunities to meet diverse women in the tech industry who can offer direction on navigating the tech field as well as providing guidance on career choices in the tech industry. They can also become great role models whom the girls aspire to emulate.

Introduce STEM Curriculum at the Early Educational Stage

Introducing STEM-related disciplines like robotics, coding and others into school curriculums is another great way to pique the interests of young girls in ICT. Programs that are designed to expose the girl child to the rudimentary knowledge of ICT can help prepare the girl child to make informed career choices as they grow older.

Raising Awareness through Online Platforms

Social media and various online platforms are regularly used by many, especially among the younger generation. This becomes a useful vehicle through which campaigns, dialogue, and conferences that tell success stories of exceptional women in the tech industry can be leveraged upon to encourage more participation of girls in the sector.

Government Policies

Government policies that are designed to encourage more inclusion of women in the digital workspace or provide support through various means for girls interested in tech related careers can go a long way to boost more representation of women in the tech industry.

Peer-to-Peer Training

Finally, having successful women tech professionals actively training and guiding young girls through the ropes of their respective fields of choice can be helpful in not only ensuring retention and success in their selected profession but also attracting more female participation in other tech related fields.

Okechukwu Nzeribe works with the Onitsha Chamber of Commerce, in Anambra State, Nigeria, and loves unveiling the richness of African cultures. okechukwu.onicima@gmail.com