Meet the Entrepreneurs
Akirachix January 2014
Mobile Innovation
akirachix
Inspiring young women in technology by creating a powerful network across Africa Judith Owigar, President and Operations Director, Kenya
CHALLENGE Although women represent more than half of the world’s workforce, they are often under-represented in the formal workplace. Some sectors are experiencing significant gender gaps, ICT being one of the most prominent examples. In Kenya, only 15% of the working force in ICT are women. This can be explained by difficulties related to acquiring the education and training necessary to develop an appropriate skill set, but also by misconceptions and lack of information on what the sector is about. Women earning low incomes in particular have far fewer opportunities to enter the technological sector as they mostly settle into jobs in informal economies with low prospects for advancing in a professional career.
“WE CAN CHANGE THE IMAGE OF AFRICA BY INCREASING THE NUMBER OF WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY.”
CONTACT INFORMATION Nairobi, Kenya
+254 60 529876, +254 94 515189 jowigar@akirachix.com
www.akirachix.com /AkiraChix
@akirachix
BUSINESS MODEL Akirachix is a social startup. Formed by a core team of eight entrepreneurs (7 women and 1 man), it develops its work with the support of a large number of volunteers (usually former recipients of training courses) who provide mentoring to new students. It has also developed a strong network of key partners such as iHub, Google Rise, Computer Aid, Seneca Group, and infoDev, who support the organization in a number of ways. Akirachix originally benefited from an infoDev grant and a sponsorship from Google Rise, and the startup still mainly relies on grants and external support. Each training program has a series of different sponsors. However, Akirachix is planning to diversify its income by charging event and training participants and by offering consulting services.
IDEA Judith Owigar, together with three other women, Linda Kamau, Angela Oduor, and Marie Githinji, formed Akirachix in 2011 with the goal of promoting a new female ICT workforce in Africa. The project also aims to be socially inclusive by bringing access to technology and entrepreneurship to the most disadvantaged. To reach this goal, the team has developed a series of workshops offered in Nairobi slums. They have created activities in partnership with the academic, public, and private sectors as well as with civil society organizations. Akirachix, which stands for energetic and intellectual women, offers a number of workshops on basic skills development and interdisciplinary trainings to Kenyan women. These are complemented with a wide range of networking events, such as Mobile Garage and Girls in ICT Day, where professional women in ICT are invited to encourage young girls to consider a career in the sector.
“AKIRA IS A JAPANESE WORD MEANING ENERGY AND INTELLIGENCE. AKIRACHIX STANDS FOR ENERGETIC AND INTELLECTUAL WOMEN.” www.infodev.org
twitter: @infoDev
ENTREPRENEUR’S INSIGHTS
NEXT STEPS
WORKING WITH infoDev
Introduce a basic computer skills program for children between 9 and 12
• START A PROJECT WITH THE RESOURCES YOU HAVE: Do not wait for the perfect moment to start, it may never come.
Establish a training program in smaller cities outside of Nairobi Support other organizations with similar visions in guiding women towards technology in Kenya or abroad
• BUILD ON A GOOD SUPPORT NETWORK: It is crucial to develop good relationships with key stakeholders.
Diversify revenue through charging for training and consulting services
• DO NOT GIVE UP: Failure is a part of the learning process of an entrepreneur.
Consolidate and expand the network of partners and sponsors
• HOLD ON TO YOUR PASSION: Having a vision of the goal you want to reach is what keeps you going.
KEY OUTCOMES VALUE FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS Attending to the most vulnerable: Akirachix offers scholarships and provides education programs in schools and universities to empower women earning low incomes.
BUSINESS FACTS USERS REACHED
1,992
MAJOR DONORS
2
JOBS CREATED
5
WOMEN THAT FOUND EMPLOYMENT
23
NUMBER OF PEOPLE TRAINED
396
NUMBER OF EVENTS ORGANIZED
12
(70% women)
(Google Rise and infoDev)
networking events
Supported by:
www.infodev.org
twitter: @infoDev
• FUNDING FROM infoDev COVERED THE MOBILE GARAGE PROGRAM, for students across Kenya, including developer bootcamps and community building events. • THROUGH INITIAL SUPPORT FROM infoDev, Akirachix got more organized and formalized and could hire an administrator. • FOLLOW-ON FUNDING FROM SIDA (Swedish International Development Agency) could be obtained when Akirachix had put good structures in place.