Girls Together Summit Abuja: Bridging the Digital Divide for Girl Child

Favour Ishember, Abuja

The Girls Together Summit Abuja, organized by HelpLine Social Support Initiative in collaboration with the Office of the Mandate Secretary, FCTA women Affairs Secretariat, and Hasam Foundation, brought together young minds, innovators, and leaders to shape the future of the girl child in the digital age.

The pioneer Mandate Secretary, FCTA Departments of Women Development Secretariat, Dr. Adedayo Benjamin Laniyi, emphasized the importance of digital innovation and creative education for the girl child.

She highlighted the FCT’s commitment to providing equal opportunities for girls to access digital education and articulate their link to the global digital world.

“The way forward for FCT girl child in the digital age, the way forward is clearly articulated in our pioneer department of with all the dice of digital Innovation and creative education.And for us, this is the clear intervention for giving not just an advocacy, its an equal opportunity, a levela for any girl child digitally and globally to be able to access as well as articulate the link coladote through digital education and more importantly through the intervention and investment of political will of an administration in her.

Educationally and in every ramifications of creative expression and identity.This is what FCT, the administrative model the Women Affairs Secretariat has designed and defined for the adulisent girl child in this time of digital expression”

“The digital expression, digital capacity is a priority and we are leaving no girl child behind, whether she is from a place of advantage or seemly advantage because she comes from a certain background or she’s from a remote rural destination, somewhere across our 804 communities,62 local wards of our own geopolitical weapons here within the Federal Capital Territory, you are opportunity, you’re not left behind, you’re a priority.

“The digital skill set are in critical priority, they close the gap. Artificial Intelligence, isn’t about some foreign expression or advantage,it is what we bring home, abd and we are particular about setting up accelerators through the different digital stimulater that the ICT programs , scholarship programs, working through the school, working the first Lady’s Renewed Hope Agenda, for adulicent. All of these different interventions are to create a very ajaile environment for equal opportunities for the girl child and the boy child, I must say, we are not leaving the boy child out of it , it’s about bringing the genders to a place of blended advantage and invested opportunities”

The President, HelpLine Social Support Initiative, Dr. Jumai Ahmadu, in her opening remarks, encouraged the participants to take advantage of the sessions, speakers, and networking opportunities to dream big, connect with fellow trailblazers, and spark new ideas that can change the world.

Represented by the Coordinator, Helpline Social support Initiative Voice of the girls Parliament, Jane Chinwe Williams, Dr. Ahmadu added that the summit aimed to empower girls to become leaders in the digital revolution, break down barriers, and ensure their participation in the digital world. It also sought to prepare and equip girls to navigate social media spaces safely and responsibly, she said.

“To be able to avoid becoming a prey of social media,we know what that space is doing, it has introduced our girls to sight phonographic many other evil vices.

This summit intend that these girls are prepared, empowered and adequately equipped to be able to know what they need to do and what they need to look out for when ever they’re in social media spaces, because they learn online and we have leadership online like Google class rooms are there for them to learn, so when they’re online, they should be monitored, they are supposed to know what they are supposed to do.

“And at the same time, those of them who are entrepreneurs should be able to know what to do to advance their businesses online”

On her part, Hajia Hawa Ibrahim, Chairperson, Wives of FCT Traditional rulers, shared her personal experience of the challenges of girl child education and emphasized the need for caution in the digital world.

She advised girls to be careful, know their online surroundings, and avoid making friends online due to the risks of cybercrime and bullying.

“this Summit is long overdue but I think is the first of its nature, I for one, experienced the hardship of girl child education, because at the time I was born, the girl child education was not rampant, I see my education through thick and thin and that’s why I’m passionate about the girl child education”

“There are some disadvantages in the digital world, such as cyber crime, bullying and so on, but I will tell them to be more careful, tread gently and know where they are at a particular time.They should

know who they’re talking with , don’t make friends online , it can be dangerous, and of course, they will improve as they go digital, but the disadvantages are very high, so we advise them to tread gently”.

“Incidentally in FCT, if you look at the City center in Abuja, you’ll think we’re in the next world, either London or America, but when you go to the suburbs, you see that most of the places, the poverty there is very high, education level is very low, early marriages are still going on, so I will call on the Federal government to come up with some policies or our FCT representative in the Honourable House of Assembly should stand up to their feet and make sure that such policies are being enacted, women education, though they say is free, free but bearley active.

“So we encourage our parents also to allow their girl child to go to school and reduce early marriage” she noted.

The summit highlighted the importance of policies and initiatives to support women’s education, reduce early marriages, and increase access to digital education, especially in rural areas. It served as a platform for empowerment, innovation, and inclusion, celebrating the potential of girls and women in the digital age.