The event attracted the participation of 30 outstanding trainees from across the country, along with representatives from UNDP in Vietnam, programme instructors, partner organisations, and fellow young entrepreneurs.
With a commitment to promoting digital transformation, Vietnam has implemented the National Digital Transformation Programme to 2025, with a vision to 2030, which was approved by the Prime Minister in 2020 with focus on three pillars: digital government, digital economy, and digital society.
Despite the commitment and strong support from Government agencies and other stakeholders in the ecosystem, the process of national digital transformation and enhancement of digital capacity for the workforce in Vietnam still face challenges such as the complexity of emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and especially the gender gap in the field of digital technology.
According to the research of the Vietnam Women’s Union, women have fewer opportunities to access and use digital resources compared to their male counterparts. This disparity hinders women from harnessing digital tools for learning and working purposes.
Recognising this situation, Empower Her Tech — a digital skills training programme — was officially launched in mid-December 2023 by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Alobase.
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During the programme, the trainees engaged in 10 online learning sessions, covering various modules from basic to advanced digital skills (Photo: UNDP Vietnam) |
The programme aims to enhance digital skills for young women entrepreneurs and females aged 18-35 involved in non-tech startups/businesses. The programme provides basic knowledge about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and emerging digital technologies, enabling young women to improve their personal and business performances alike.
It received nearly 300 applications within two weeks. Sixty trainees were selected, with active participation of people with disabilities and ethnic minorities.
During the programme, the trainees engaged in 10 online learning sessions, covering various modules from basic to advanced digital skills with high practical application, such as using Wix (a no-code tool for website creation), generative AI (including ChatGPT, Bard, and Microsoft CoPilot), and Canva (a design tool for non-professionals).
Throughout the programme, positive feedback was received from both trainees and trainers.
Sharing her thought about the programme, Le Thi Ha Giang, a trainee of Empower Her Tech, expressed her gratitude to UNDP, the event’s organising committee, and the instructors.
“Their innovative approach, meticulousness, and placing the learners at the centre have resulted in tailored content encompassing basic to advanced skill support for all participants,” she said.
The ‘Empower Her Tech’ training programme is among UNDP’s contributions to narrowing the gender gap in the field of digital technology.
Resident Representative of UNDP in Vietnam Ramla Khalidi
For her part, Resident Representative of UNDP in Vietnam Ramla Khalidi extended her congratulations to the aspiring and inspiring young female entrepreneurs who were part of this programme.
She said that they have taken concrete steps to build their digital skills and enhance their leadership capacities, and the giant leap to take their businesses to the next level, fostering sustainable development for all.
She stressed that the ‘Empower Her Tech’ training programme is among UNDP’s contributions to narrowing the gender gap in the field of digital technology.
The Empower Her Tech training programme aims to build a community of young women entrepreneurs to inspire and promote the application of digital technologies in both their lives and businesses.
A toolkit consolidating all learning materials will be published in the near future. UNDP envisions the replication of this training programme at various educational institutions throughout Vietnam, ensuring that all young people, regardless of gender, can leverage opportunities in the digital age.
