UNESCO and Beijing Normal University (BNU) provide students from 10 schools with opportunities to explore ICT, innovation and pathways into STEM careers
MOROGORO, TANZANIA – 17 September 2026:
For a group of Form One girls from 10 secondary schools across Morogoro Region, technology is beginning to mean much more than simply using a smartphone or accessing the internet. It is becoming a space where they can learn, create, solve problems and imagine new possibilities for their future.
This shift in perspective is at the heart of a three-day girls’ Bootcamp being held at Kilakala Girls Secondary School from 16 to 18 September 2026, under the UNESCO–Beijing Normal University (BNU) project, “Closing the Digital Divide: Ensuring Gender-Transformative Digital Skills Education for Women and Girls.
The journey began on 15 September 2026 with a meeting held at Odema Hotel in Morogoro, before the students moved into the Bootcamp phase, which officially began on 16 September 2026 at Kilakala Girls Secondary School, where the training is continuing until tomorrow, 18 September 2026.
The project is implemented by UNESCO with funding support from Beijing Normal University (BNU), technical support from the UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (UNESCO-INRULED), and in collaboration with the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania.
The initiative seeks to strengthen girls’ digital skills, increase their interest and understanding of ICT education and careers, and challenge gender stereotypes and expectations that can discourage girls from pursuing technology-related fields.
Helping Girls See Their Place in Science and Technology
For many of the girls participating in the Bootcamp, the experience provides an opportunity to look at technology from a different perspective.
Rather than seeing ICT as something mainly associated with boys or as a tool for basic communication, the girls are being encouraged to see themselves as potential innovators, researchers, engineers, entrepreneurs and creators of digital solutions.
This approach responds directly to one of the challenges identified by the project: gender stereotypes and social expectations that may portray technology as a male-dominated field, affecting girls’ confidence, interest and sense of belonging in ICT-related education and careers.
By creating opportunities for girls to engage with digital skills and female role models, the project aims to help them recognise that their future can include technology—not only as users, but also as creators and problem-solvers.
When Technology Meets Real-Life Challenges
One of the sessions during the Bootcamp, “Gender, Technology and ICT in the Agriculture Sector,” delivered by Dr Lily Makalanga Bogohe, demonstrates how technology can be connected to everyday challenges facing communities.
The session highlighted the important contribution of women to food production while drawing attention to barriers that can limit women’s access to digital technologies, including the cost of smartphones and data, limited digital skills, and social and gender-related constraints.
At the same time, the session explored how digital technologies can create opportunities for women and girls, including access to market information, weather information, mobile financial services and other digital resources that can support livelihoods and decision-making.
The lesson for the girls is clear: technology is not separate from real life. It can be used to understand problems, develop solutions and improve the way people live and work.
Challenging the Idea That Technology Is “For Boys”
The Bootcamp also creates space to question one of the persistent barriers to girls’ participation in technology: the belief that science and technology are primarily for boys.
The project recognises that limited female role models and restricted exposure to ICT education and career pathways can influence how girls perceive their own possibilities.
Through practical learning, mentorship and exposure to technology-related opportunities, the girls are being encouraged to build confidence and develop a stronger understanding of where digital skills can take them.
The message is not simply about teaching girls how to use technology. It is about helping them understand that they can participate in shaping the technologies and solutions that respond to the needs of their communities.
Starting the STEM Journey Early
The Bootcamp comes at an important stage in the girls’ education. As Form One students, they are at an early point in their secondary school journey, when exposure to new fields of knowledge can help shape their interests and aspirations.
The project’s focus on digital skills, ICT education and career pathways provides an opportunity for girls to begin exploring fields related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), while developing the confidence to consider ICT-related studies and careers.
The broader objective is to ensure that girls are not left behind as technology continues to transform education, employment and society.
By investing in girls’ digital skills today, the initiative contributes to a future in which more women can participate meaningfully in technology, innovation and digital transformation.
From Learning to Possibility
The Bootcamp is more than a three-day learning activity. It is an opportunity for girls to see possibilities that may not previously have been visible to them.
As the sessions continue at Kilakala Girls Secondary School, the experience is helping participants connect digital skills with real-world challenges, explore their interests and begin thinking about the role technology could play in their education and future careers.
Ultimately, the project seeks to create an environment in which girls can develop the skills, confidence and understanding needed to participate in the digital world on equal terms. Its communication approach also places emphasis on documenting girls’ experiences, achievements, role models and pathways into ICT education and careers.
For the girls of Morogoro, the journey is only beginning.
Science and technology are not only for boys. Girls, too, can learn, innovate, create solutions and help shape the digital future.
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