​Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago​

Trinidad and Tobago, 2016, August 12​

The Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (the Authority) celebrated International Women and Girls in ICTs Day 2016 by hosting a full day mini exhibition at the Authority's office, Lowlands Mall, Tobago on Thursday April 28th 2016, participating in the Ministry of Public Administration and Communications' (MPAC) "Girls in Coding Workshop" event on May 4th 2016 as well as hosting a "Careers in ICT & Role Model" presentation and workshop at the St. Mary's Home for Children on August 12th 2016.

Exhibition in Tobago

The Authority was able to meet with young women who are currently seeking guidance on academic programmes to pursue as well as information on the various careers within the telecommunications and broadcasting industry of Trinidad and Tobago.

These young women were advised that changes in technology especially in the labour market meant that the increasing number of jobs require specific education and training. Recommendations were made for these young women to visit the three leading tertiary education institutions in Trinidad and Tobago to explore the programme options available related to Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs).

These young women were also motivated to fulfil their aspirations and capitalise on the opportunities available to them by combining their passion with technology studies even though there were concerns on the ICT career and education programme options available in the sister isle, Tobago.

Girls in Coding Workshop

The Authority exhibited at MPAC's Girls in ICT Day event which included two introductory coding workshops for 15 female second /third form students and 10 female MPAC staff. This event encouraged the development of skills in computer programming amongst the participants.

Participants were able to discuss the role of the Authority and its contribution to the development of Trinidad and Tobago's telecommunications and broadcasting industry as well as information niche career areas in ICT.

Careers in ICT & Role Model Presentation

The Authority hosted a half day workshop comprising of two presentations and a mini exhibition for 21 female residents at the St. Mary's Home for Children.
This event was aimed at encouraging young girls and women between the ages 9 to 18 to maximise the use of ICTs to achieve their academic goals and encourage them to pursue careers in this area even though they may face challenges.
Ms. Camille Denalli, IT Administrator at the Authority shared her experiences with these girls on the challenges she faced while pursuing her career within a male dominated industry. She provided inspiration and explained how easy a career in ICT is during an interactive session especially in application development.
The girls were able to meet with representatives from NIHERST who provided an interactive session on robotics and computer programming as well as NALIS on accessing e-resources on their online library.