By Yasmine Hawa (YES 2018-2019, Cameroon, placed with AFS-USA in Mequon, WI)

My participation in the YES program has helped me get out of my comfort zone and find my calling in life. It was the catalyst I needed to make my dreams come true. Through my YES experience, I’ve found that I’m passionate about women’s empowerment and education for the underprivileged. So last year, I decided to apply for a YES Alumni Grant because the grant opportunity enables alumni to carry out bigger, more impactful projects.

I live in a community where a woman’s “place” is in the kitchen. The girls in my community dream of getting married, and that’s about it. Many find themselves as single mothers without a lot of job opportunities. Through my project, Tech4Girls, I aimed to open the eyes of these young women and show them that they have abilities that go well beyond kitchen work. 

The project was designed for women of all backgrounds, but we particularly targeted young single mothers, orphans, and underprivileged women during our planning and recruitment. To find participants for our program, my fellow alumni team members went campaigning in different neighborhoods and at an orphanage. It was a wonderful experience to connect with the community and identify women that needed this opportunity. Online advertisements for our program were somewhat helpful, but online advertising alone wouldn’t have enabled us to find those who would benefit the most.  

An eager and diverse group of 30 young women participated in this three-week training on basic computer skills, productivity tools (like Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint), and the internet. Sessions were held Monday to Friday, from 9am to 2pm. At the beginning of the training program, a pre-evaluation test revealed that most of the participants were not able to turn on a computer or identify its components.

By the end of the training, all participants were able to do secretarial work. They were able to demonstrate their understanding by designing newspapers using tables, making calculations in Excel, creating presentations using PowerPoint, and using the internet for research. 

At the closing ceremony, a local delegate on issues of women and family attended as a special guest. She expressed her excitement for more projects in the future as she saw how impactful Tech4Girls was and all the skills participants gained by the end of the training.

Tech4Girls equipped a group of 30 young women and girls in my community with the digital skills needed for today’s careers. And in doing so, we not only empowered women, but worked to address the gender technology gap and unemployment rate in our community. Tech4Girls was a success, but our work is not done  yet. We plan to keep in touch with participants through a WhatsApp group, where we will post job opportunities and additional information and resources to reinforce the skills they’ve acquired.

Tech4girls was one of the projects on my bucket list. I discovered many hidden things about myself. Working in a group has always been hard for me. But through this project, I realized that it is impossible to work alone and carry everything on your shoulders. A lesson that has stuck with me is that when teamwork is necessary, you must choose the best people for your team. Working on a team requires patience and self-control, which I acquired through this experience.

I want to thank all those who helped me, especially my alumni network, iEARN-Cameroon, and the YES program, which made this experience possible. I am grateful to my high school, which supported me at all levels. A big thanks to my family, who supported and encouraged me. And thanks to all those who volunteered their time and energy to make this project possible.