Technology

Technology Has Proven to be Essential During this Pandemic, but How Do We Make Sure to Reach Those Women Who Lack Both Skills & Access?

Social distancing and remote work have become the norm as the world grapples with solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic. Collectively, our reliance on technology is greater than ever before and yet many still lack access to the most basic forms of equipment, knowledge and expertise. Many Syrian women face considerable roadblocks to meaningful and impactful participation in society, and having limited or no access to technology exacerbates the isolation and further impacts women’s labor force participation negatively.

The Center for Civil Society and Democracy have long been working to improve this technological gap. In March at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rockflower partnered with them on a pilot project, Supporting Syrian Women to Have Access to Technology. The two main goals of this project were: to provide Syrian women with equipment and to train them to be digitally literate. Not only did the project achieve those objectives, but it also created a safe and supportive environment and expanded networks for women to stay connected during a trying time for so many.

The pilot project began by identifying 10 Syrian women living in Turkey to participate. First, they joined a WebEx group session to learn more about technology. A consultative approach was taken in the form of one-on-one online sessions between CCSD staff and the 10 participants to formulate what was needed most, which lead to the final decision on what the main projects would constitute.

Each participant received twelve 2 hour sessions, in which the topics included: the importance of technology, navigating the Internet, social media platforms, Microsoft Word and Excel application features and mentorship on final projects.

Four laptops were distributed to women who completed a satisfactory needs assessment and did not have regular access to a laptop. This pilot project found that Syrian women in Turkey have access to the Internet on their phones, but to provide greater economic empowerment computers are critically important.

The pilot project was a vital starting point to build on a program that will prove to be extremely beneficial for a number of Syrian women living in Turkey. These training sessions have already resulted in a job offer for one of the participants, a support network for the women involved, both professionally and personally, an increase in their confidence and knowledge and of course, the acquisition of new skills.

New developments for the continuation of the program have also occurred, including splitting the course into knowledge levels, the addition of courses such as Turkish language tutoring and project management, and flexible times to allow for maximum participation.

The next steps for the program are to distribute more laptops and work on the next round of courses. Rockflower looks forward to continuing to work with CCSD to make this a reality.

Participants and Training Facilitators during the Presentation of their Learnings for the Entire Program - August 2020

Participants and Training Facilitators during the Presentation of their Learnings for the Entire Program - August 2020

Rockflower Partners with the AVAZ Association to Establish a Women's Technology Education Center in Turkey

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Rockflower is pleased to announce a new partnership with the AVAZ Association. They aim to support the refugees in the region and the local people in need to access to permanent income sources and social rights, and to open alternative ways for those to integrate better into the society.

Rockflower will provide the funding to establish a women’s technology education centre where refugee and local women and girls will be trained in multiple computer-related programmes.

Find out more about the Establish Women's Technology Education Center Project.