More Girls in ICT: The Internet Society Signs MoU with the Mexican Government
Women and girls are significantly less likely to choose ICT (Information and Communication Technology) studies than men. There are many reasons for this. Barriers to access, but also retention in ICT studies are complex as they are often related not only to economic but also to social and cultural barriers.
A lot of initiatives are being developed worldwide to break these barriers, and at the Internet Society we believe that only if we join efforts we can overcome them and help to close the digital gender gap.
For this reason, on July 19, the Internet Society and the Secretariat of Communications and Transport of the Mexican government signed a cooperation agreement to support the “Women in STEM, Future Leaders” project.
In Mexico only 35.5% of tertiary graduates in ICT are women. The initiative aims to change these numbers. It provides training and support to young women from public high schools with the purpose of encouraging them to pursue a career in science and ICT.
The program, launched at the beginning of 2018 in coordination with the U.S.-Mexico Foundation, has already reached more than 180 girls from all over the country. It is working closely with 32 Mexican Connected Points (Puntos Mexico Conectados), which are centers that provide Internet access and training to Continue reading