In the framework of the Hellenic Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Greek General Secretariat for Gender Equality organises, in collaboration with the European Centre for Women and Technology and in cooperation with National and European Stakeholders, the Conference «Women & Girls Go Digital – WGGDG, National Action Plan for increasing the female talent in digital jobs», in Athens on the 4th of April, 2014.
In the context of Europe 2020 Strategy and in particular of the implementation of the Digital Agenda for Europe, the objective of the Conference is to demonstrate the link between e-Skills, Gender Diversity and ICT as a key factor for economic growth based on the creation of digital jobs. The Conference will address the digital skills gap and will raise awareness about the added value by including female talent in digital jobs, research and innovation. The Conference will address the digital skills gap and raise awareness about the added value of Including female talent in digital jobs, research and innovation. Emphasis will be given to the promotion of new opportunities for young digital entrepreneurs and to the challenges of the role of the media in the new digital era. The Conference will present the Initiative “Women & Girls Go Digital in Greece – WGGDG” pledge, and the progress regarding the National Action-Plan. The WGGDG initiative aims to increase the female talent in Digital Jobs based on the European Commission’s Grand Coalition for Digital Jobs initiative and elaborated in collaboration with national and European stakeholders.
WGGDG is a coordinated Greek mechanism that will link actors active at local, regional, national and European level and create a community of entrepreneurs, business people, policy makers, the academic community and talents among Greek girls and women in order to create a boom for women in ICT careers.
The innovative approach of the Conference is reinforced by the dissemination of good practice at European level among participants.
The General Secretariat for Gender Equality is inviting high level officials of the EU Member-States and EEA countries, key stakeholder representatives of public and private sector, young entrepreneurs, as well as women ICT managers and professionals.
In the context of Europe 2020 Strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and the relevant Action 60: Increase participation of women in the ICT workforce, the ultimate goal of the Conference is:
To raise awareness on how ICT can be a long-term solution to promote female employment at European and national level;
To initiate and support better collaboration between Public and Private sector stakeholders aiming at the creation of digital jobs at national level;
To exchange good practice at European level among participants.The Conference aims to demonstrate the link between e-Skills, Gender Diversity and ICT as a solution for economic growth based on the creation of digital jobs.
Focusing on the main issues of the Women in ICT policy, the objectives of the Conference will be a common elaboration for the below mentioned key priorities:
Strengthen the positions of women in the ICT sector and the attitude and approach of partners and stakeholders in the labour market when tackling the problem of labour supply & demand mismatch in the EU;Promote good practice for career counselling and mentoring to be mainstreamed;Foster the dialogue between women and ICT companies by promoting the attractiveness of ICT careers among women and strengthening the trust of ICT companies, especially SMEs, in women as employees;
Establish a direct contact with women willing to start/change to ICT careers and assist them in finding relevant stakeholders for their career development.The Agenda of the Conference includes four sessions:
The discussion will:
identify the existing barriers for women to be part of ICT workforce at national level;address the digital skills gap;highlight the impact of the new technology enablers on the female workforce;raise awareness about the added value by including female talent in digital jobs, research and innovation;promote new opportunities for young digital entrepreneurs;invite the media to play an active role in presenting good practice of Gender Diversity in Digital Jobs.The conference is by invitation only involving:
High level officials of the EU Member States and EEA countries;Representatives of public and private sector stakeholders;Young entrepreneurs;Women ICT managers and professionals;Researchers and creative thinkers from the private and public sector;The European Centre for Women and Technology.