12 March 2008
Lagos — Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, Head, Information Technology, Federal Ministry of Information and Communications and Mrs. Florence Seriki, Managing director, Omatek Computers, leading indigenous manufacturer of computer systems have confirmed participation in the first ever national Women in ICT forum.
A statement made available to THISDAY stated that the two women leaders in technology would be leading an impressive array of women leaders and professionals both from within and outside the IT sphere and other dignitaries to the epoch making event that seeks to promote gender equity in the design, development, implementation, and use of information and communication technologies in the country.
The theme of the forum, scheduled for April 4, 2008, at the Muson Centre in Lagos is "Mobilizing Nigerian women for the Millennium development goals (MDGs)".
Don Pedro Aganbi, Managing Consultant, Technology Africa, organizers of the event, said that the Women in ICT forum is a lecture cum workshop organised as part of the prestigious annual Titans of Tech Lecture and exhibition and promises to them most remarkable gathering of IT professionals and decision makers in 2008.
Participants at the forum are expected to include, Women CEOs of ICT firms, leading women in ICT from the public and private sectors and the academia, market women and female students.
Mrs. Odusote would deliver the keynote address, Mrs. Seriki would chair the session while special guest includes Mrs. Grace Ekpiwhre, Minister for Science and Technology, Sarah Sosan, Deputy Governor, Lagos state and Eng. Ernest Ndukwe, the executive vice chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) among others.
Mrs. Florence Seriki started out in 1986 as a youth corper with the NNPC, by teaching the Who-is-Who in the financial and oil industry how to type with the computer when it was only the big companies that could acquire it. She later veered into PC marketing, networking and servicing. Today, Seriki is a leading Amazon who has built a legacy around Omatek brand of PCs.
Mrs. Seriki is the only female among the managing directors of the four companies making Nigeria proud in the area of locally made PCs. She is also acclaimed as the first female to assembly computer systems in the African continent.
With a very large factory at Ojota, Lagos from where she manufactures her products, she has touched every sector for the economy in addition to sharpening the skills of students of tertiary institutions who come for industrial attachments.
In addition, she only recently established a $2m factory in Accra, Ghana in furtherance of the firm's commitment to provide cutting edge Technology products across the entire African region.
Mrs. Odusote works as Head of the Information Technology Unit of the Federal Ministry of Information and Communica-tion. The Information Technology Unit, created in 2000 is an Integral part of the Hounourable Minister's office and is saddled with the responsibilities of provision and management of Internet facilities in the ministry, procurement of hardware and software, maintenance of information technology facilities in the ministry, management and maintenance of the ministry's website, information technology training in the ministry and liaising with relevant governmental Organisatioins and NGO's on Information Technology.
Mrs. Odusote is a Fellow of Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) and the Computer Professionals Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN) among other organizations.
On what the forum would achieve, Aganbi explained that it seeks to create a platform for women in ICT to: network and synergise; share ideas; chart a course for women empowerment and explore the avenues for national development created by ICT.
He revealed that leading ICT firms have already began to jostle for stands at the exhibition which is expected to attract key players both in the public and private sector and the general public.
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