Caught in the Web

Since I discovered the power of Web 2.0, my life has never been the same again.

I wake up in the morning; turn on my PC and viola… I am connected to the entire world! As I make breakfast in the kitchen I glance at the computer screen to get latest news and updates. As I breastfeed my baby, one hand scrolls through amazing stories written by women on the globe. From my bedroom I write inspiring articles that serve a global audience. I am not limited by space or time. Anytime anywhere I connect with women in other parts of the world. This limitless access to the world is what excites me most about Web 2.0.

In many ways, Web 2.0 is the wonderful panacea we need to solve the marginalization of women and foster the global women's empowerment movement. The first story I wrote that got published on digital media was a piece on sex workers in Cameroon who see their job as bad business and long for alternative lifestyles. When I shared this story on the World Pulse community, I learnt much from the comments and ideas of other women. The interactive nature of Web 2.0 allows me get feedback for my work and I gather ideas that I can implement in my own community, Moreover, I see stories from other countries that reflect what goes on in my community. I easily identified with Olutosin from Nigeria when she posted a story on Pulsewire on her unfortunate childbirth experience in a government hospital in Lagos, Nigeria. Her write-up clearly depicted the scene in government hospitals in Cameroon. When we hear similar stories from other countries, together we can raise a strong voice that will shout out against ills plaguing women. Web 2.0 gives stakeholders the information they need in fostering women's empowerment. It encourages the shy to speak out, adds more courage to the courageous and makes bold even that still small voice in that underreported community. A popular adage in Cameroon stipulates: “One hand no fit tie bundle” (One hand cannot tie a bundle). If women must unite to tie the bundle of women's empowerment, they need a platform and that platform is Web 2.0!

Mentally, socially and economically, Web 2.0 holds lots of benefits for me. Through search engines, social media and digital media, I gather lots of invaluable knowledge and knowledge is power! Web 2.0 provides me with a unique opportunity to share my creativity to the world and network with others. It also means financial empowerment to me. The stipends I will hopefully get for working as a citizen journalist will facilitate story-telling for me enable me to acquire the basic necessities of life.

To me, Web 2.0 is indispensable in the quest to make the world a better place for women. I will keep speaking. My voice is my writing, my microphone is my computer and my amplifier is Web 2.0!