Data professionals have stressed the need to have more women in decision making in the data science space. Speaking during 2024 International Women’s Day, the group drawn from WanaData, a pan-African network of female data professionals, urged women in tech, media, and data science to work together to alleviate gender bias in data and leverage the opportunities in the industry.
Organised to celebrate the 2024 International Women’s Day and spearheaded by Code for Africa, the two-day event, themed “Breaking barriers: Empowering women in data science and data journalism for accelerated progress” brought women from Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Senegal, Cameroon, and Mali, South Africa.
Athandiwe Saba, Code for Africa’s iLAB managing editor, who was also the keynote speaker, highlighted the pivotal role of women in shaping progress, and underscored the significance of data in decision-making. At the same time, she called on other women to actively encourage and mentor more women to participate in data collection and analysis processes, as a way of ensuring their perspectives are represented.
She said: “By collaboration and uniting our efforts, we can amplify the crucial role of women in shaping the future of data journalism and technology. Together, we can uncover and address hidden narratives that hinder women’s progress and access, and we can prioritise women’s unique perspectives and insights, enriching our collective understanding of the world around us.’’
Women remain grossly underrepresented in the workplace. According to a KPMG survey, most firms saw only a seven percent rise of women in their workforces (from 18% to 25%) between 2020 and 2022 and plan an additional increase of only six percent (from 25% to 31%) over the next three years.
The situation worsens in leadership roles. Most firms reported an increase of only four percent (from 13% to 17%) from 2020 to 2022 and expect an additional increase of only six per cent (from 17% to 23%) over the next three years. Saba says: “The numbers keep growing at a rather slow rate, it is therefore important for women in science, women in tech, media, and data science to work together to alleviate gender bias in data and leverage the opportunities to secure seats at the table”.
Khanyi Mlaba of Global Citizen, spoke on the hurdles women face in accessing education. She said “Women and girls are often sidelined, limiting their participation in data science discussions. Lack of access often leads to their neglect”.
Peninah Kimiri, co-founder of GenderJobs.org, highlighted the dearth of gender data as a barrier to achieving gender equality. “The importance of tailored early education programs for girls, integrating data science into school curriculums, and fostering hands-on learning experiences such as data camps and hackathons,” she said.
Another panellist, Chisom Nnamani, explained various factors influencing women in data science such as underrepresentation, gender pay gap, and challenging work cultures.
She said, “Just one out of every four women worldwide works as a data scientist. This disparity fuels the gender gap, constraining inclusivity and a variety of ideas and perspectives.”
Highlighting the significance of establishing data clubs in schools and the pivotal role of investigative journalism rooted in data, Tricia Nabaye, engagement and advocacy coordinator at Pollicy, said: “By integrating diverse perspectives into our curriculum, we can provide learners with a broader understanding of data, fostering appreciation for its various applications and implications across different contexts”.
As a community which thrives on a mission of leveraging data-driven projects and digital storytelling to drive positive change across the African continent, WanaData came up with actionable strategies to bridge the divide, including the elevation of more women into leadership positions within media organisations, featuring more women as subjects in news stories, capacity building through education and training tailored to young women and girls. Speakers also discussed the need for more mentorship and networking opportunities – just like those offered by WanaData – to create environments where women can learn from each other and share experiences which can spark innovation and build confidence.
About WanaData
Established in 2017 as an initiative by Code for Africa, WanaData is part of Africa’s largest network of civic technology and data journalism labs, operating across 26+ countries on the continent. Code for Africa’s mission is to develop digital democracy solutions that grant citizens access to actionable information, empowering them to make informed decisions and fostering civic engagement for enhanced public governance and accountability. WanaData, as one of its flagship initiatives, unites over 300 female Data scientists, Data journalists, and technologists across 26+ African countries. Our goal as a community is to leverage data-driven projects and digital storytelling to drive positive change across the African continent.
Code for Africa (CfA) is the continent’s largest network of civic technology and data journalism labs, with teams in 21 countries. CfA builds digital democracy solutions that give citizens unfettered access to actionable information that empowers them to make informed decisions and strengthens civic engagement for improved public governance and accountability. This includes building infrastructure like the continent’s largest open data portals at openAFRICA and sourceAFRICA. CfA incubates initiatives as diverse as the africanDRONE network, the PesaCheck fact-checking initiative, the sensors.AFRICA air quality sensor network, and the research and analysis programme CivicSignal.
CfA also manages the African Network of Centres for Investigative Reporting (ANCIR), which provides the continent’s best muckraking newsrooms with the newest possible forensic data tools, digital security, and whistleblower encryption to help to improve their ability to tackle crooked politicians, organised crime, and predatory big business. CfA also runs one of Africa’s largest skills development initiatives for digital journalists, and seed funds cross-border collaboration.