The pioneering team of Digi's Wanita Era Digital
Digi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd, the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and the National Council of Women’s Organisations (NCWO) have collaborated recently and launched DigiWED, which stands for Digi Wanita Era Digital. The purpose of the programme is to inspire, empower and provide Malaysian women with basic internet skills.
WED will be conducted in a series of educational meet-ups at 1Malaysia Internet Centres and NCWO affiliates’ offices around the country, along the basic internet skills includes safe usage of smart devices and the internet for communicating, sharing, browsing, and entertainment, as well as give them good reasons to use the internet. Digi hopes to expand the programme further to help women to take their business online in this rising digital economy era.
“Progress towards becoming a digital nation must be an inclusive process. By connecting the unconnected and bridging the digital gender gap, we help ensure every Malaysian can be active participants and contributors to growing our digital economy, and we are pleased to partner Digi Wanita Era Digital as they help drive this ambition forward.” said the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia’s Secretary General YBhg. Dato' Sri Dr. Sharifah Zarah Syed Ahmad during the official launch.
(L-R) Eugene Teh, Digi's Chief Corporate Officer, Vimala Menon, Digi's Board Member, Orsolya Sekerka, Digi's Chief IT Officer & Wanita Era Digital (WED) Champion, YBhg. Professor Tan Sri Dato' Seri Dr. Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabuddin, President, National Council of Women's Organisation (NCWO), YBhg. Dato' Seri Dr. Sharifah Zarah Syed Ahmad, Secretary General Ministry of Communications and Multimedia, Albern Murty, Digi's Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Ramani Gurusamy, Vice President, NCWO and associates and YBhg. Dato' Mohd Ali Hanafiah Mohd Yunus, Chief Digital Ecosystem Officer, Malaysian Communication & Multimedia Commission (MCMC) at the launch of WED.
She also added, “We are proud to witness a strong collaboration between the government, private sector and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to drive digital inclusion and empowerment among women. We fully support this programme and encourage more women to step forward to equip themselves with the digital skills and other benefits provided by the programme.”
Moving on, Orsolya Sekerka, Digi’s Chief IT Officer and WED Champion stated that 6 million Malaysian women have yet to access the internet. She sees there is a great opportunity to bring meaningful change by bridging the digital gender gap, and addressing the barriers to internet adoption among women – which are not knowing how to get online and not having reasons for use.
“The internet is a powerful instrument of transformation but it must be accompanied by skills and confidence for women to use it as a tool for empowerment. And we hope Digi Wanita Era Digital will inspire Malaysian women to take advantage of the freedom to connect and benefit from all the opportunities that flow from it - not only as an internet consumer but also an active participant in the digital economy. We know when women thrive, so do their families, communities and society as a whole. In this respect, we imagine the internet in the hands of every Malaysian woman; to see them connected and empowered – that is Digi’s ambition.”
In addition, WED is open to any community across Malaysia which includes residents associations, women groups, colleges, social groups and others. The programme meeting can organised by Digi as long as the group contacts the company through their website or email. For more information on Digi Wanita Era Digi, visit their website to check it out.
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