As part of celebrations to mark the global Girls in ICT Day, on Thursday, April 23, 2020, Soronko Academy, a technology social enterprise, announced the virtual launch of the Rotary Soronko Girls Coding Project in partnership with the Rotary Club of Limburgerhof/Vorderpfalz in Germany and Rotary Club of Accra Airport.

The project will receive funding support from Rotary International.

In order to practice effective social distancing in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, the launch happened virtually via Facebook Live and was streamed to over 500 viewers.

The launch ended with premiering a creative video where project partners shared more on the project and its intended impact.

In line with former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon's statement on gender equality, this project was launched to ensure that women and girls in Ghana have access to education, not just as a basic human right but as an economic imperative in support of a more productive and strong overall economy.

The Rotary Soronko Girls Coding project will empower girls through ICT, digital skills and improved soft skills to ensure that they have pathways out of poverty.

The project is targeted at girls in Ghana from underprivileged backgrounds aged 17 to 25 years who have completed Senior High School.

It will train 300 girls in three years who will then join over 10,000 women and girls who have already been trained by the Soronko Academy.

The young women will undergo training for eight weeks in the areas of coding, digital skills and essential soft skills, and then connected to job opportunities so they can financially sustain themselves after completion of the course.

They will also be given access to Soronko Academy’s recently launched online learning platform and skills assessment tool - www.mydigitalskills.org to continue to improve on their digital skills after the training.

Speaking at the launch, Founder and CEO, Soronko Academy, Regina Honu stated, “with employment being a pivotal pathway out of poverty for families, this project will ensure young women are not left behind in the job market, especially in the ICT Sector in Ghana.

“For us at Soronko, empowering women and girls beyond the classroom is our prerogative and projects like these help us to ensure that these women are getting a well-rounded training and education. Rotary International has been supportive of our mission so far, and we look forward to a continued partnership,” she added.

The girls will be selected from public schools and community organizations in underprivileged communities in the capital city of Accra based on financial need, interest, and potential.

Once the eight-week training is completed, the young women will intern in a modern business solution center to be set up as part of the project.

The business center will offer services such as printing, photocopying, passport pictures, web development, graphic design and social media management for startups, university students and businesses in Accra.