information technology education and employment for women in kenya
Sub-Saharan Africa women have historically assumed the roles of housewife and subsistence farmer. However, with the global growth of information and communications technologies (ICT) and digital divide interventions, women are enrolling in university programs which prepare them for employment in the formal workforce. In this paper, we present a study in which we interviewed 32 women enrolled in an ICT program at a Kenyan university. The interviews examined the women's responses to the program as well as the women's experiences in seeking and securing ICT-related employment. Our findings indicate that women were highly optimistic, embracing ICT as a practical mechanism for achieving entre into the labor force and empowering women. However they perceive significant structural barriers, such as gender discrimination in hiring practices, organization's inability to recognize their mix of technical and business competencies, and national ICT policies which did not support the growth in the technology sector.
education gender information technology workforce