Technology transform women

Safe Technology spaces for women I am the programme manager with emerging women organization called NLK based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia since 2005. NLK is dedicated to women’s comprehensive empowerment include: socio- economic, health and advancement of their rights. In 2016, NLK in collaboration with our partners based in Canada had built G+1 centre for Library, technology literacy of the target women, girls and other vulnerable youth groups in the community. The programme include economic empowerment, Library and books, information technology/ computers, Internet, vocational and skill Trainings with the objective to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS and Gender equality on women and girls in the communities through comprehensive programme that meet women’s unique priorities and needs. Currently, the programmes are going very well. Among others, Basic computer skill building courses comprise of Microsoft, word, excel, access and internet use for three months by a qualified trainer. The program approximately train 100 to 150 target women and provide employment opportunities as well. To avoid the low placement rates of the target graduated women, NLK promote individually operated internet cafes while generating employment opportunities with leading computer service firms. NLK’s identified strategies to address the social inclusion and economic empowerment for the target women and vulnerable girls in target communities through linking the digital Literacy training program to employment opportunities for the target women upon successfully completing the training program. NLK investment to pre-identified employment opportunities through facilitating forum with leading computer service firms and internet cafes with growing demand for labor in the target communities; Moreover, depend on fund availability, NLK provide capital and materials such computers, printer, photocopy machines and broad band internet modem for the trained women in group to commence their own self operated internet cafes and secretary services On the other hand, NLK is currently actively engaged in prevention of the spread of COVID-19 in its operational grassroots communities in Ethiopia. The COVID -19 has been spreading across the entire world with a few period of time less than a quarter. It challenged the entire peoples of all cultures across the world regardless of diversity across our planet. Currently, along the effort of the government,' the civil society organizations including my own organizations are very busy working in the target community to stop further spread of the virus. To date confirmed cases in Ethiopia reached to 29. NLK committed to the target women to access information online and connect with other to protect our own self, families, and their communities. The way for ward, my organization ( NLK) will be committed to maintain the programme services to the target women groups where they come together to gain knowledge, skills and confidence to advance their abilities and improve their own wellbeing, through access to internet/online based information and resources to raise their voices , advance their rights and improve their wellbeing .