How ICT can enhance women entrepreneurs’ service delivery

Tapping into potentials of ICT in achieving set objectives is not limited to race or gender it is only based on peoples decision to  leverage on technology and better their lots.Advanced countries have adequately taken advantage of ICT in all spheres of their lives and that is part of what has made their nations a […]

Tapping into potentials of ICT in achieving set objectives is not limited to race or gender it is only based on peoples decision to  leverage on technology and better their lots.
Advanced countries have adequately taken advantage of ICT in all spheres of their lives and that is part of what has made their nations a more organized societies.
Consequently, many Small and Medium Enterprise (SMEs) all over the world have harnessed opportunities in technology for their business transformation to large organizations.
Generally speaking, SMEs are known to be faced with series of challenging ranging from access to capital, lack of skills or inexperience and other factors causing setback for small businesses to grow. However, the challenge women entrepreneurs are going through is far more than the general problems in the sector as women would have to join home front bother with business activities that are cumbersome on its own.
Perhaps one way to alleviate problems facing people in today’s world is by technological adoption which may not be possible without requisite knowledge to explore it. This made important for women to equip themselves with skill that will help them achieve best of their business activities.
Meanwhile, it has being realized that women are lacking behind in reaping the benefit of ICT, may be because they are not aware of the benefits of what technology can do to enhance their businesses as they are really missing out.
Worried by this trend, the Federal Ministry of Communications Technology has came up with series of women and girls oriented schemes.
One of such gender based schemes were Smart women and 1000 ICT girls training in partnership with Huawei technologies last year to build capacities and encourage girls develop carrier in ICT.
Economic experts have over the time identified SMEs as constituting over 50per cent of businesses in Nigeria and contribute immensely to employment generation for the country’s teeming youths. This thus makes this segment crucial to national economic development as their roles cannot be neglected.
This according to economic analyst is affecting the economy as a whole and the women themselves as women run most of the SME and it is important for them to know how to apply this digital boom their businesses, to make their business grow, to reach out to new audiences and clients.
Exploring ICT by women entrepreneurs, the experts also said, could foster loyalty and relationship with existing clients as technology has so much potentials to offer business organizations.
This why Diamond Bank Plc recently organized an ICT training workshop for women entrepreneurs as part of efforts geared toward building technological capacity in women to enhanced national economic growth.
Participants at the training were women who run businesses of their own and were interested in knowing how technology can help them to be more productive.
The lead facilitator at the training, Executive Director Women Technology Empowerment Centre (W-TEC), Oreoluwa Somolu listed reasons why women should be conversant in ICT to include costs associated with access, in terms of buying the infrastructure:  hardware, software, subscription to internet, whether it is having time.
This she said is necessary because women are very busy; they hold so multiple roles and they don’t have so much time that can be devoted to that.
She said, “Historically, the disparity starts from the young age although things are changing with this generation. Guys are pushed towards it. Boys are favoured in terms of technology. So when girls have problem with their phone, computer they think of which guy to call to fix it. It is about the brain either the boy or the girl could do it. The girls also need role models if girls don’t have role models that have used technology successfully, it will also enhance the feeling that technology is a male-thing.  We provide the training and break things down and explain through the relevant hardware.”
Somolu confirmed that research shows that women and girls are underrepresented in the area of technology whether it is technology use, access to development, and development of new technology.
She stated, “Even though, we don’t really have so much data here in Nigeria; there is a lot of data around the world that shows that women are underrepresented but here the small sample study shows that women are in the minority.”
Declaring the two-day training held at the Pan Atlantic University, Vicoria Island Lagos, the bank’s Head, Retail Banking, Mr. Jude Anele, said Diamond Bank’s interest empowering women through ICT is to foster development of new business as well as capacity building in women entrepreneurs.
According to him, the motive of the training was also for the development women SMEs because Diamond banks believe women build strong and sufficient businesses.
Also, Diamond Bank Head, Small and Medium Enterprises Segment, Mr. Chimanma Dozie said the bank has been strongly identified with SMEs over the years as the workshop was particularly targeted at technologically empowering women to further than business.
He noted that everyone who indicated interest was invited and it was not for those who banked with and promised Diamond bank’s support to all participants to take their businesses to enviable heights among the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises.