Meet Celestine Ukpere, Edtech entrepreneur and digital skills community developer
By Malemba Mkongo, Kenyan correspondent
Celestine Ukpere is an academic researcher PhDc, currently the Founder of Celestine Ukpere Consulting and development lead for Glaxotech E-Learning Kenya which is a woman-owned ed-tech based startup. Glaxotech E-Learning was a partner to Google’s sponsored Digital Skills for Africa training for the youth program as training and curriculum implementation partner, and community impact assessor for the program.
She has consulted in various capacities for Google’s DSA program including Engagement Manager SSA and is currently doing the community impact assessment. Celestine is the current GBG Nairobi Co-Manager and WomenWill Nairobi Lead and also a board member at the iHub Nairobi (2020). An expert an expert on the Education and Skills at the World Economic Forum, a member of the Facebook Community Leadership Circles Nairobi.
What inspired you to join the Tech-world considering for long, it has been seen as a man’s World?
I was a housewife for the longest time and suddenly got widowed in my late 30s. This made me realise the skills I had needed to have an element of technology in order to be relevant. This made me delve into the technical side of electronic marketing and also enroll in relevant tech based courses that aligned with digital marketing, business processes and the importance of using technology data for business decisions.
What were the challenges when you ventured into this path and how is it years later?
The challenge was that there were few women you could actually talk to in terms of technology or computer science, there were hardly any events specifically targeted to women in computer science. The situation has improved slightly with women in technology having specific summits and webinars that are aimed for them. Though still the numbers of women in technology are few.
How has it been moving from one industry to another in the telecommunication industry?
I was fortunate to jump straight into the mobile technology space through a mobile enabled platform, when I ventured into a tech career and knowing that Africa had leapfrogged the desktop and laptop space straight into mobile it was advantageous to me and my understanding of what projects were relevant for me.
You are a founder of a consulting firm and an E-learning platform, how did you start your journey and what were the aspirations?
When I returned to Kenya from South Africa I was involved with an Edtech company. Seven years ago this idea was ahead for the market and since it was a subscription model, it wasn’t applicable. I was then approached to consult for Livity Africa as an independent consultant for the Grow With Google Digital Skills for Africa Program as the inaugural country manager in implementing the pilot. I realized that for any established brand to outsource any projects to me they needed a consulting company and not a consultant. The EdTech company was still in existence and did most STEM based CSR projects, and then the pandemic happened. Now we are relevant, and we are re branding and restructuring our business model and offer. Joining the World Economic Forum as an expert enabled me to understand the relevance of Edtech as part of the upskilling process to future-proofing your people.
At the moment, is there a change of attitude towards women in STEM or it is still the same as years ago?
With the skills needed in the future of work and remote work there has been a change in the role of women in STEM, realising that more women need STEM skills to fit into the new normal. So it is not like years ago there has been a lot of advancement.
As a country, are we making strides in encouraging girls to pursue a career in STEM? If yes, is there an increase of girls in STEM fields or they are still shying away from this path?
Global statistics show that women represent around 39% of the global workforce, less than 20% of tech workers are female and only 19% of all computer science degrees are held by women. With the increase in use of AI technologies, demand for machine learning and data science skills are increasing. You can imagine how many of the mentioned statistics apply to Kenya.
COVID19 has made companies and organizations realise their workforce was not ready for the technology shift of remote working. Women have been MOST affected by the pandemic due to lack of tech or STEM skills a needed skill for remote working. The government is playing an active part in encouraging girls to embrace STEM subjects through different initiatives and projects. They taking deliberate measures to encourage girls to pursue computing, technology, and promote diversity in the tech space.
How can we use technology to enhance the livelihood of women not only in Kenya, but in Africa?
Women can use technology in planning their day to day or monthly activities or calendars and be able to do follow ups and keep themselves on check. Various sectors such as education, entrepreneurship and other careers have been made aware of how to embrace the many free digital skills courses being offered either physically or online to enable them upgrade their skills and improve their livelihoods.
As a tech-savvy, are you satisfied with the role which women in STEM have played during this pandemic?
Women have done their part in using technology to educate their peers through online platforms and this has enabled distance or time to no longer be the excuse since webinars have a global reach and can be recorded for later consumption. Online webinars have played a big role in enabling women to get digital skills and relevant information from the comfort of their homes.
Is the government giving enough support towards women’s success? Do we have enough policies and goodwill to ensure women climb the success ladder?
The government is doing all it can to support women in leadership and politics by having the gender quota implemented, which goes a long way in encouraging girls to also embrace STEM subjects in school that will ultimately lead to STEM careers, however the policies have been tweaked. 2020 has been a year of change from the diversity angle and also gender diversity has been a key factor in most multinational companies placing women in Kenya at the helm of some very important firms like Microsoft, Google and Glovo.
What should be done differently, to ensure more success stories of women and girls in STEM?
There should be more relevant women’s stories being featured and girls should be encouraged to take up STEM subjects, in this way their numbers will increase and it will have a great impact on future generation of women embracing STEM careers.
Amazing Celestine. Always working to empower young girls around her.