The Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) has highlighted several outstanding female achievers of MDEC’s school-goer targeted digital-skills programmes in conjunction with International Women’s Day.
Participant of the 2019 Digital Ninja programme under MDEC’s #mydigitalmaker movement, Chan Hew Yan is the first in the spotlight.
“Whenever I learn and discover something new, I like to keep asking why and form further theories. When it all clicks, it feels like I have solved this huge puzzle and I get a sense of satisfaction from realising that everything is connected,” she said.
The Digital Ninja programme falls under the #mydigitalmaker movement, one which enables citizens, especially members of the low-income group, to generate additional income by partaking in digital assignments via an online crowdsourcing platform.
“Seeing women in tech jobs reminds me that the sky’s the limit! It does not matter who you are, as long as you have passion, you are willing to learn and you do not listen to naysayers,” she added.
Participant at the Global IT Challenge for Youth with Disabilities, Aisyah Batrisyia Muhamad Ramdzan attributed her interest in joining the competition, to the exposure she had gained in digital activities at a Digital Champion School, another avenue that the #mydigitalmaker Movement offers to drive a digital innovation culture in schools and in the local community.
“My mum, who is a lecturer in microelectronics, always encouraged me to participate in digital courses such as Python, Arduino, and Scratch. That has gotten me into exploring more programming.
My mother is the woman who most inspires and motivates her, citing genuineness and kindness as the greatest source of a woman’s strength,” she added.
Design thinker, Saii Yashaa Gopinath Rao is the third to be highlighted by MDEC to be outstanding in her speciality to solve real life issues and her love for STEM.
Enthusiastic about programmes, such as Digital Ninja, she believed that upcoming programmes under the #mydigitalmaker movement should involve senior graduate participants who can guide and inspire first-time junior participants.
“The digital world has created a space that allows me to explore my own creativity and thus demonstrate what I can accomplish. Young women can achieve anything with passion and the yearning to keep learning and pledge support for breaking gender stereotypes,” Saii said.
Vice President of the Digital Skills and Jobs Division at MDEC, Dr. Sumitra Nair expressed that technology offers gender equity and inclusion, inevitably creating a technologically integrated society in Malaysia.
“Whatever value an individual adds to a cause, project, team, or organisation, is determined not by gender but by skills, knowledge, and determination. Technology bridges gender gaps and offers opportunities even in unprecedented uncertainty,” she concluded.
