When cybersecurity heroes meet, what do you expect?
Last weekend was fascinating, I meet with the majority of cyber #heroes we have in Africa and for the first time, I meet Confidence Staveley and Judy Ngure in person. This was a long overdue meet-up.
During the Linux party at Strathmore University, we had fun with the cyber girls, accompanied with great energy around. I led an interactive discussion with industry leaders who shared their cybersecurity experiences, career tips, perspectives on diversity, innovation, and other industry insights with the girls as a way of giving back, engaging, empowering and preparing the girls to have great careers in the industry. Key takeaways were clearly summarized by Faith Olingá. Find them here
The girls showcased their talents in poetry, singing, teamwork, coding etc. The winners in the CTFRoom challenge were awarded gifts respectively.
ISACA offered free student #membership to the cyber girls and One In Tech, an ISACA Foundation is also offering #scholarships to the girls to advance in their studies and #careers. We look forward to a great future for the #girls ahead. I am confident that we will overcome the challenges of under representation in the industry and also minimize the cybersecurity skills gap sooner in #Africa.
Big up-to CyberSafe Foundation for this initiative and @CTFRoom for training the girls.
To learn more CyberGirls – Africa’s biggest female cybersecurity training and mentorship program, click here This Foundation is headed by an African lioness (Confident Staveley) she is very passionate about nurturing talent, great energy, relatable cybersecurity leader, dedicated and if working hard was a person, that’s her.
Experience with the cybergirls initiative: My first time to engage with cybergirls was in 2021 where I volunteered to mentor the cyber girls cohort. This experience with the girls, the Sunday mentorship calls, the 1:1 meetings with girls who needed to share their experiences privately, a day in the life webinar series, sharing of group experiences on slack was very enlightening, inspiring, and it showed me how much we need to join efforts to support girls in the industry.
Cyber Girls mission is very clear -To improve the socio-economic well-being of girls and women living in underserved communities in Africa and contribute to fighting poverty & cybercrime, cybersecurity skills shortage, and gender disparity in the tech industry (particularly cybersecurity niche); as well as fighting unemployment/underemployment.
Are you a student and looking forward to continue your education and launch your IT career with ISACA! For cybersecurity, IT audit, and risk management students enrolled at an accredited/reputable school in Kenya, Apply now! To apply for ISACA Students scholarships, click here Applications are due on 14 August 2023
Event images:
Africa’s cyber heros
Topical Discussion areas included:
- “Diverse group almost always outperforms the group of the best by a substantial margin.” – Scott E. Page. In your own opinion. In your own opinion Why does diversity matter ?
- According to studies, women are significantly underrepresented in the male-dominated field of cybersecurity – What are the challenges in recruiting and retaining underrepresented groups, especially women in cybersecurity careers?
- How can the cybersecurity industry be innovative through inclusion?
- (ISC)² published Innovation Through Inclusion: The Multicultural Cybersecurity Workforce, Findings were based on survey responses from the U.S. The study did reveal that racial and ethnic minorities tend to hold non-managerial positions, and pay discrepancies, especially for minority women, is a challenge. How can government, academia, and industry help to advance underrepresented groups in this field?
- In your opinion what are the diversity and inclusion challenges the Cybersecurity Industry faces today?
- What are some of the key lessons you have learned as a cybersecurity leader?
- Trends to watch out for – kindly mention a few emerging cybersecurity trends that they should look out for?
- Feel free to continue the conversation by sharing your responses to the above questions
