Mediterranean Tech Women Network Launch

Womenpreneur & Friedrich Naumann Foundation are proud to announce the Launch of the Mediterranean Tech Women Network!

About the Mediterranean Tech Women Network:

The Mediterranean Tech Women Network is a community to connect women in tech for learning, exchanging talent, opportunities and support through the Mediterranean and beyond.

As technology is nowadays fully integrated in our societies and everyday lives, it is upon us to foster equal opportunities for women and girls to thrive. Building upon the Friedrich Naumann Foundation and Womenpreneur’s “Mediterranean Tech Women Week” (MTWW) organized in 2020, we seek to continue fostering empowerment and development by setting up a Mediterranean network of women in the technology sector.

The aim of this network is to connect female leaders across borders to create and multiply opportunities in the technology field for women, to provide role models for girls interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) careers. While many women- and tech-centered formats exist, there is to date no Mediterranean tech network for women. We aim to fill that gap.

The Event

We will start with the official launch of the network with a keynote speech from the partners:

• David Henneberger, Head of FNF Madrid office.
• Sana Afouaiz, CEO and Founder of Womenpreneur Initiative.

And welcoming remarks from Carme Artigas Brugal. Secretary of State for Digitization and Artificial Intelligence.

Followed by a panel discussion on “Equality and Equity in Tech: Where do Women Stand?”

This roundtable will focus on the innovative policies and solutions necessary to ensure women are given equal opportunities in the tech workforce. This high level conference aims to bring together high level speakers, such as Tech CEO women, and political representatives to talk about the importance of increasing the number of women participating in the tech sector.

Speakers:

• Anna Dorangricchia, Programme Manager Social and Civil Affairs Division at the Union for the Mediterranean.
• Rawan Odeh, Partnership Manager for Monday.com
• Eva Díaz, CEO Shapping New Humans.

Moderator: Chiraz Bensemmane, Founder Pitch World Fast & Coach Tribe.

Agenda for Friday, 03.12.2021

Background:

It is well known that far fewer women choose to go into STEM related (science, technology, engineering, and math) careers than men. According to the World Economic Forum’s 2021 Global Gender Gap Report, “labour markets continue to exhibit persistent trends towards the segregation of occupations along gender lines” and “gendered signals” from employers contribute to unwelcoming environments and experiences for women who choose to go into technology fields. These unwelcoming environments can be particularly exacerbated for women of color or migrant backgrounds, women who are responsible for the majority of domestic labor in their households, or those who share any other minority markers related to socioeconomic background or gender/sexual orientation. This trend persists when looking at emergent technologies like AI in which only 22% of AI professionals worldwide were female in 2018, indicating an enormous gap between women in the field and their male counterparts. AI is a particularly important benchmark to measure because new technologies reliant on developing algorithms can imbed gender discrimination into their core functionality. Additional challenges in attaining gender equality in senior leadership of tech organizations also persists, with minimal increases occurring from 2015 to 2020 (24.2 – 27.8%).

According to the April 2021 UNESCO Science Report “The Race against Time for Smarter Development,” women now represent 33% of all scientific researchers. However, in the fields most important to the so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution (engineering, computing, physics, mathematics)—and in which there continue to be shortages of skilled laborers—women are still in the minority. Female-friendly start-ups still struggle to access adequate funding, with only 2% of all venture capital secured funneled to those founded by women. Addressing hostile work environments, parity in senior leadership, support for female STEM academics, and equitable educational opportunities must be paramount in tackling these ongoing gaps.

For these and other reasons, it is important that networks like the MWTN provide spaces that expose women in tech to new skills, job prospects, and role models. In particular, MWTN will focus on creating sustainable economic opportunities for women by investing not only in training, but advocacy and policymaking centered on long-term economic collaboration in tech industries across Mediterranean countries. Given the low levels of women’s participation in the technology sector, supporting opportunities for mentorship and empowerment is of paramount importance. Sustained mentorship can allow mentees to increase their communications and leadership skips and grow in their careers—it also has a demonstrated positive effect for mentors themselves, many of whom are likely to advance in their careers through taking part in programs like MWTN.

How to register to the event:

How to register to the event: Mediterranean Tech Women Network event will be in person-event in Madrid. You can register to the event by sending an e-mail to: info@womenpreneur-initiative.com

A Covid-Safe ticket is necessary for attending the event

Address of the event:

Wellington Hotel, Salón Duque de Wellington, Velázquez, 8, 28001 Madrid

Stay tuned!

If you wish to learn more about the Womenpreneur Initiative and its impact on economic female participation in Belgium and the MENA region, visit our website and social media and read our latest blog about it!

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