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Cyber Heroines: Changing the Future for African Girls

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The 2021 Tomorrow’s Cyber Heroines study undertaken by CyberHeroines, KnowBe4 Africa and Infosphere Limited surveyed more than 445 teachers across 14 African countries to unpack the complexities that face African girls in the technology landscape.

Cyber Heroines: Changing the Future for African Girls

With Africa’s future reliant on its ability to adapt to digital transformation and the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), levelling the playing field for women has become critical. It has never been more important to change the cybersecurity workforce gender statistics than it is today.

“We have to give girls more opportunities, inspire them to get involved in technology and the cybersecurity field, and to remove the preconceived and socialised ideas that prevent women from pursuing careers in technology,” said Anna Collard, SVP of Content Strategy and Evangelist KnowBe4 Africa.

“The world is digitising rapidly and women are at risk of being left behind. We have to change the dialogue around technology and make it more inclusive for women and girls.”

Women are already at a disadvantage. A recent study (http://bit.ly/39RuMGq) by the Association for Progressive Communications underscored the reality of the gender digital divide.

In Africa women have less access to internet-based technologies than men, they have fewer opportunities, they are even more limited in their ability to move out from under poverty.

As the world continues to move into automation, women will be the most affected as their roles are replaced by machines. Change has to start now, it has to start at home, and it has to be carried through into education.

“We want African women to participate in the digital age – we cannot leave them behind,” said Aprielle Oichoe, managing director of InfoSphere.

“We must empower girls to go into technology and this starts at a young age. We need to make a conscious decision to change the way we treat young girls. The dialogue needs to focus on making technology interesting for girls, not just something that they should ‘leave to their brother.”

The study found that a lack of education, limited guidance, minimal role models and societal preconceptions are having a serious, long-term impact on women’s careers and futures.

With cybersecurity and technology struggling to find skilled people, the market is wide open for those with the talent and the training to build sustainable and successful futures. In addition to thriving careers, training and education in technology and cybersecurity is essential for the wellbeing of young girls and women in Africa.

“According to research, women of colour are 34% more likely to be targeted by online hate speech than their white counterparts, and a huge percentage of African girls are concerned about their online safety,” said Collard.

“We must give them the tools, training and confidence they need to prepare for this online vitriol, and protect themselves.”

The key factors inhibiting women’s entry to the worlds of technology and cybersecurity include: negative stereotypes, lack of role models or mentors, low self-confidence, and competing in a male-dominated industry. Women are generally discouraged from careers in STEM and steered towards traditionally female roles instead.

“There is no such thing as a female role, not anymore,” said Oichoe.

“Now there is just opportunity. We just have to make sure that this opportunity is given to everyone.”

The report unpacks the findings, the insights, and the solutions put forward by educators and experts across Africa. It examines the education curriculum, the challenges facing young African girls today, and it looks at suggested initiatives that can be implemented to shift perceptions and transform the future for the women of Africa..


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Nigeria CommunicationsWeek believes that technology makes life more exciting and helps improve the lives of people around Nigeria and indeed the world. So since 2007, we have devoted our energy to independent reportage of technology and how they affect lives.

E-Business

UK Orders Apple to Create Backdoor for Encrypted iCloud Data

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United Kingdom has issued a “technical capability notice” to Apple, mandating that the company create a backdoor to access users’ encrypted iCloud data.

UK Orders Apple to Create Backdoor for Encrypted iCloud Data

This directive, issued under the Investigatory Powers Act of 2016, requires Apple to provide British security officials with the means to retrieve all content uploaded to iCloud by any user worldwide.

Apple’s Advanced Data Protection (ADP) feature, introduced in 2022, offers end-to-end encryption for iCloud data, ensuring that only users can access their information.

The UK’s demand challenges this security measure, potentially compelling Apple to either comply by creating the backdoor or withdraw the ADP feature from the UK market.

Compliance could set a precedent, leading other governments to request similar access, thereby raising global privacy concerns.

The UK Home Office has declined to confirm or deny the existence of such notices, stating, “We do not comment on operational matters, including, for example, confirming or denying the existence of any such notices.”

This development underscores the ongoing tension between governmental surveillance efforts and technology companies’ commitments to user privacy.

 


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Oracle Adds AI Pricing Features to Financial Software

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Oracle on Thursday added another set of artificial intelligence (AI) tools to NetSuite, one of its corporate finance software offerings, including some that might make it faster for consumers to get a price quote on purchases like custom bicycles.

Oracle has taken a different tack with AI than rivals such as Microsoft. Rather than racing toward general purpose virtual assistants, Oracle has decided to add targeted features that speed common-but-tedious tasks like entering a brief write-up of how a sales meeting went into a corporate records system.

Another such task that is common in the business world is giving a customer a price quote on a complicated purchase that might have a lot of options, when a sales professional would need to sift through materials to come up with a price.

NetSuite on Thursday announced a feature to compile such a quote via conversation with a chatbot asking what the customer wants, which can either be used by sales professionals behind the scenes to speed up their work, or directly by consumers in the case of e-commerce businesses.

“When you buy something like a bicycle, you have to configure it – figure out what parts you want and which parts work together. We all do it when we buy our cars on the web these days,” Evan Goldberg, executive vice president of Oracle NetSuite, said.

“If you can configure (products) for customers more easily, you can do more deals in a day, or each deal costs less.”

To power those features, Oracle has decided to skip the costly race to develop huge AI models and instead works with partners such as Canadian startup Cohere.

Goldberg said that Oracle’s recent agreement to build massive data centers with ChatGPT creator OpenAI could lead to working with it as well, though the two firms have made no formal announcements.

“I think you could safely say that there’s a possibility that OpenAI will be part of this,” Goldberg told Reuters. “We are eager to work with OpenAI.”

 


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IBM Exits Nigeria and Ghana, Transfers Operations to MIBB

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IBM, the American multinational technology giant, has reportedly announced plans to exit Nigeria, Ghana, and other key African markets, transferring its regional operations to MIBB, a subsidiary of the Midis Group.

IBM Exits Nigeria and Ghana, Transfers Operations to MIBB

The move, which according to TechCabal was revealed in a statement by the company, effective April 1 2025, is part of a new operating model IBM is adopting across select African countries.

Under this arrangement, MIBB will take over IBM’s local operations, customer support, and relationships while marketing and selling IBM products and services across 36 African nations.

“MIBB will market and sell IBM products and services in 36 African countries, thereby giving MIBB’s sales network direct access to IBM products, services, and support, further boosting innovation and growth in the region,” IBM stated.

IBM has been a key player in Africa’s tech industry for decades, providing critical infrastructure for banking, telecom, oil and gas, and government services.

However, its planned exit follows a trend of multinational corporations leaving Nigeria.

In December 2024, Swiss cement giant Holcim announced its departure from Nigeria, selling its 83% stake in Lafarge to a Chinese firm.

Similarly, South African grocery retailer Pick n Pay disclosed plans in October 2024 to exit Nigeria by selling its 51% stake in a joint venture.

IBM has yet to respond to media inquiries regarding the specifics of its transition strategy and reasons for the exit.


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