On Saturday, November 26, 2022, the Office of the Prime Minister, through the Industry and Innovation Unit, concluded the Guyanese Girls Code 2022 Programme.

The annual programme aims to empower young girls between the ages of twelve to sixteen by providing opportunities to learn coding/programming and increase their competency in Information technology.

For two months, females across Regions Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Ten participated in virtual training. Courses included Block-Based programming, Flowcharts, Problem Solving and Design Thinking. The programme also allowed them to create a sisterhood and encourage the exploration of ICT among themselves and, by extension, their peers.

Addressing the graduates in the Boardroom, physically and virtually via Zoom, at the Office of the Prime Minister, the Director of the Industry and Innovation Unit, Mr. Shahrukh Hussain, underscored the Government’s commitment towards empowering women in the ICT Sector.

The Director said as efforts continue towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including promoting Gender Equality, his Unit is stringent towards working to close the digital divide in the tech industry. “Empowering women is crucial to accelerate sustainable development; ending all forms of discrimination against women and girls is not only a basic human right but also has a multiplying effect across all developing areas, especially in ICT,” he said.

In addition, Director Hussain called on all sectors within Guyana to build a robust ICT Sector and recommitted his Unit’s commitment to strengthening the digital divide through ICT Literacy.

Meanwhile, Lecturer Penelope DeFreitas, one of the camp’s trainers, commended the participants for their zest to pursue ICT knowledge and skills. Ms. DeFreitas stressed the course’s impact on the females who can create a pathway towards an ICT-related study or job. DeFreitas disclosed during the two months, participants were eager to discuss topics and come up with solutions to any given task. “We are Planting seeds that will set you, girls, on the path to becoming bright minds who can take Guyana many strides forward, she said.

The Guyanese Girls Code is one of the many ICT programmes executed by the Industry and Innovation Unit within the Office of the Prime Minister.