According to the
(ISC)² Cybersecurity Workforce Study, women's participation currently makes up approximately 24% of the cybersecurity workforce, with even fewer women holding managerial or senior positions. On top of that, the number of unfilled cybersecurity positions in 2021 was of 2.7 million.
There is a need to enable women to take on the opportunities that the cybersecurity sector has to offer, in the goal of closing the workforce gap, fostering more inclusivity in a traditionally male-dominated field, and ultimately optimizing the work towards a more secure cyberspace for all.
ITU-D Women in Cyber programme aims to tackle the cultural and systemic barriers that prevent broader inclusion of women in cybersecurity, while working to equip them with the skillset to enter and thrive in the field.
The goal of the programme has been and will continue to be to encourage community building, guidance, and senior-junior solidarity among women in the sector.
The programme showcases role models and examples of career paths taken by women leaders in the field, encourages networking and knowledge-sharing, and mentoring the future generation of women cybersecurity professionals. It enables the process of creating a global network of women sharing expertise and guidance on the cybersecurity field, the opportunities it holds, and the skillsets needed to navigate it.
The pilot edition of the Women in Cyber Mentorship (WiC) Programme was launched on 8 March 2021 on International Women's Day and is is jointly organized by the ITU, the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (
FIRST), and
EQUALS.
