Women of Rubies
Category

Career Gems

Category
In Career Gems By

Meet Soliyana Gizaw Hunde The 10-Year-Old Coder & Winner Of AfriCANCode Challenge

10-year-old coder, Soliyana Gizaw Hunde recently won the inaugural AfriCANCode Challenge, after she developed a fun and engaging educational game named ‘Mathstainment’, to practice math and raise awareness of COVID-19 related health protocols.

Mathstainment was inspired by Soliyana’s love of maths and science and her strong community spirit.

“Being part of the AfriCANCode Challenge has been fun, and winning the national and overall competition was very exciting,” says Soliyana, who lives with her parents in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa. “It has motivated me to do more and dream big.”

The AfriCANcode Challenge was introduced after the 2020 SAP Africa Code Week programme shifted to an all-virtual format in the wake of the global pandemic. The competition challenged youth aged 8 to 16 to develop a game using the Scratch coding language to reimagine school and education, or answer the question “How will your tech change the future of education?”.

Participants from 22 countries made it to the final round of the competition, and the winner was announced in early 2021. All of the top three winners were girls, with Soliyana crowned overall winner at a virtual prize-giving ceremony in February.

Soliyana says she was inspired to learn coding after seeing the projects her cousin, a software engineering student at one of the local state universities, was doing. “When I was eight, my cousin helped me take a short coding training course at a local centre. Since then, I have watched instructional videos on YouTube, and I have been motivated to keep practising.”

After the pandemic forced the Ethiopian government to close schools, Soliyana decided to apply her coding skills in the service of her community by participating in the AfriCANCode Challenge.

“When we started staying at home due to the pandemic, I heard how it was affecting people in our community and what we could do to protect ourselves and our loved ones. I decided to develop my Mathstainment game to create awareness about COVID-19 and offer a simple and fun way to practice maths.”

Mathstainment was built using the Scratch programming language. It asks a series of maths questions that lead a character on the screen ever closer to personal protective equipment (PPE) for each correct answer. After a few incorrect answers, the player has to start over. Maths questions are posed at varying difficulty levels, ranging from ‘Easy’ to ‘Difficult’.

Asked what lies ahead for the young coding champion, Soliyana says: “I want to be an astronomer. I want to know how the universe works.”

Alexandra van der Ploeg, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility at SAP, says:

The innovation and community-minded spirit displayed by this year’s participants point to a bright future for Africa’s citizens. It is also hugely encouraging to see the high ratio of female participants, whose ingenuity saw all three top place finishes claimed by girls.

SAP Africa Code Week and the AfriCANCode Challenge mobilises hundreds of partners in the public and private sector who rally around the urgent task of empowering Africa’s youth with essential digital skills. As we continue into an uncertain future, this investment into youth skills development will pay huge dividends over the coming years and decades.

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

Elsie Godwin: How To Use Social Media To Combat Fake News

On the #GettalkingwithEsther tweet chat session on May 14th,  Esther hosted versatile TV host and producer; Elsie Godwin, and they discussed “Using Social Media to combat fake news”.

The wonderful  guest dropped alot nuggets during the popular tweet chat session, here are excerpt from their conversation, and how people reacted

 

At the end of the tweet chat , the host asked participants what they learnt from the session, and this is what they have to say;
You can see more of the conversation on @estherijewere’s timeline on twitter; https://twitter.com/estherijewere

The next tweet chat is slated for May 27th.

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

Microsoft Partners With Black Girls Rock!® To Encourage Black Girls, Future Stem Leaders

Despite many career strides, encouraging Black girls to pursue STEM careers is still greatly needed. For example, in 2019, Edutopia published an article written by Carly Berwick about how stereotypes and cultural norms dampen girls’ interest in STEM. However, educators could counter the disparities with small changes to their practice. Additionally, Nicole Joseph, assistant professor of mathematics and science education at Vanderbilt University research, was quoted as stating that research has shown that Black girls view themselves as outsiders in mathematics, and teachers view them as outsiders, too.

But solutions are at work, to close the gender and race gap, with the help of companies and organizations, in addition to educators. Tech leader Microsoft, and Beverly Bond—who is founder and CEO of the award-winning women’s empowerment, lifestyle, and philanthropic brand BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® — just announced ‘a strategic partnership to build technology infrastructure and empower more Black girls to become leaders through access to culturally relevant programs, leadership development, and STEM skills.’ Black Girls Rock Inc. has been devoted to the healthy, positive identity development of young women and girls by providing programs that support critical thinking, leadership development, sisterhood, innovation, civic engagement and career exposure. Now, more goals can be achieved in some of these areas.

The press release stated that the goal of the alliance is to strengthen the transformative work of BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® with the technology and scale of the Microsoft’s ecosystem.

“It’s remarkable to be championed by a towering institution like Microsoft to propel the work we’ve been doing at BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® to educate, empower and inspire the next generation,” Beverly Bond said in the announcement. “This partnership gives BLACK GIRLS ROCK! the support necessary to expand our work to help more girls find their voices, define their truths, and forge the futures they envision.”

Marcie Nymark, director of Strategic Partnerships for Microsoft, added that Microsoft shares BLACK GIRLS ROCK’s commitment to empowering women and girls.

“We also recognize the challenges facing women, especially Black women, are complex – no one organization can solve them all. That’s why we’re excited to partner with Beverly and BLACK GIRLS ROCK! to bring together our efforts to educate and inspire the next generation of innovators,” Nymark also stated in the press release.

Resources, programs, and tech solutions will reportedly support three key initiatives, which include a BLACK GIRLS ROCK! Book Club launching this month, BLACK GIRLS ROCK 15-year Anniversary Fundraising Gala in June, and a BLACK GIRLS LEAD Leadership Conference in July.

Further details explained that the partnership will officially kick-off with the launch of the first BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® Book Club and workshop April 14, at 12pm EST/9am PST featuring Bond’s book BLACK GIRLS ROCK! Owning Our Magic. Rocking Our Truth!, and facilitated by BLACK GIRLS ROCK alumna Kathie Duperval. The virtual event will be free and open to the public. Registration should be completed through Microsoft Store events.

Additionally, Microsoft Store will host each book club event which will be followed by an interactive virtual workshop designed for students and inspired by the book’s core themes and motifs. Microsoft will be the presenting sponsor of the BLACK GIRLS ROCK 15-year Anniversary Fundraising Gala. Musical performances will include Chaka Khan’s. It was also announced that the BLACK GIRLS LEAD conference, powered by Microsoft Teams, will bring together teen girls to participate in workshops, panel discussions, and lectures led by world-class educators, artists, business moguls, scientists, entertainers and other influencers.

Source: Blackenterprise.com

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

Linkedin Adds ‘Stay-At-Home Mom’ To List Of Career Titles As COVID-19 Continues To Impact Women

LinkedIn has added “stay-at-home mom” and other role titles to its public resume function in a move to better reflect high numbers of people – particularly women – who have left the workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Options added this week also include “stay-at-home dad” and “stay-at-home parent,” and the Microsoft-owned platform has also removed the requirement that resume entries be linked to a specific employer.

The move comes following a post on Medium’s ‘Better Marketing’ website that criticized LinkedIn’s lack of flexibility on its language as biased against women who have left the workforce.

Jobs data shows that the pandemic has hit women much harder than men.

As part of its larger profile redesign, the company on Tuesday also unveiled several other changes, including a dedicated, formal field for LinkedIn users to add their gender pronouns to their profiles. Such a pronoun entry has also been long requested by many LinkedIn users, who until now have found informal workarounds (like adding their pronouns to the end of their names).

“Pronouns are a core part of our identity, and how we want to present ourselves—and within the jobs marketplace, we believe that clarity about someone’s gender pronouns is very, very important,” Ayenew says.

He adds that making all of these changes to LinkedIn’s profiles “has taken more time than we would like” because of the degree of technology redesign it has required. “The profile is very, very core and foundational to our entire ecosystem—so we have to be very careful and deliberate about the changes we make,” he says. “We are finally getting to it—and we’re excited to be rolling it out.”

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

8 Months Pregnant Aminat Idrees Wins Taekwondo Gold Medal

Nigerian athlete, Aminat Idrees, just won the Taekwondo gold medal while eight months pregnant, Blavity reports.

Idrees participated in Taekwondo’s Mixed Poomsae category, a form of exercise that showcases the hand and leg techniques of the sport at The National Sports Festival in Edo, Nigeria, last week. After her electrifying performance, Idrees took home the gold medal, she was praised by festival organizers for being “inspiring.”

“It’s such a privilege for me. I just decided to give it a try after training a couple of times…It feels really good. Before I got pregnant, I have always enjoyed training, so it didn’t seem different with pregnancy,” Idrees told reporters.

The 26-year-old underwent a complete medical exam before she could participate and was cleared by doctors after training for months. She feels like her win is an opportunity to introduce others to the art of Taekwondo.

“A lot of people don’t understand what Taekwondo is actually about. I feel this is an avenue to educate people about this. Taekwondo has two branches: the combat sport and Poomsae…I participated in [the] Poomsae event,” Idrees said.

In addition to her gold medal, Idrees also took home a silver medal in the female team Poomsae category and an individual bronze medal. She lead as a top athlete at the festival and made history as the first athlete to win a gold medal for her hometown, Lagos state.

“I felt there wasn’t much risk attached to it, so I decided to give it a try. My doctor, as well as the organizing body of the games, certified me fit to participate in the non-contact sport,” said Idrees.

Congratulations Aminat!

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

21-Year-Old Sha’carri Richardson Makes History As The Sixth-Fastest Woman In The World

A 21-year-old athlete, Sha’Carri Richardson, just made history, becoming the sixth-fastest woman in the world, Blavity reports.

Richardson has been making a name for herself on the track, getting her start as a sprinter at Louisiana State University (LSU). In 2019, she earned two junior world records, breaking the college record for the 100-meter dash as a freshman, coming in at 10.99 seconds. Then the same day she broke the 200-meter dash record at 22.37 seconds. She would go on to win big at the NCAA Track and Field Championships, breaking Dawn Sowell’s 30-year-record, coming in at 10.75 seconds. Despite her victorious year, she fell short eight weeks later, placing eighth at the USATF Outdoor Championships and missing the chance to represent the U.S. at the World Championships. 

“As an athlete, you have to take your losses just as good as your wins. If you can’t do that, you’re not a good athlete, in my opinion,” Richardson told reporters at the time. 

Soon after, Richardson decided to transition from a college athlete to training professionally, landing a Nike running deal. 

“Training here with [coach] Dennis Mitchell has been one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life. I love that he’s a coach that’s going to make sure you’re the athlete you tell him you want to be, on and off the track. I’m glad I came. It’s a great environment for training. I knew that to get to the next level, I had to make myself uncomfortable, meaning push myself to a limit I hadn’t pushed myself to before,” Richardson said. 

This past weekend, that’s precisely what she did.

Richardson competed at the Miramar Invitational in Floriday, clocking in at 10.72 seconds during the 100-meter dash and making history as the sixth-fastest woman in the world. The only women in history faster than Richardson have been Florence Griffith Joyner, Carmelita Jeter, Marion Jones, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and Elaine Thompson-Herah. Richardson told reporters this is only the beginning.

“I’m not done yet. There’s more work to be done; there’s ways to get faster, there’s ways to become better. So we’re going back to the drawing board,” she told the USA Track and Field (USATF).

USATF took to Twitter to share footage from Richardson’s victory, calling the moment “jaw-dropping.”

 

Richardson said her goal is to represent the USA at Tokyo’s summer Olympics with NBA Sports analyst Ato Boldon confirming that Richardson is “a heavy favorite” for the Tokyo title. Before she can make the team, she must finish in the top three at the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, this summer. 

“I am who y’all think I am, and I am who I say I am. My season is going to be unbelievable. Something that I haven’t been expecting. Something the world hasn’t been expecting. Its’ time,” Richardson said.

And that’s on Mary had a little lamb!

Congratulations, Sha’Carri!

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

Samia Suluhu Hassan Becomes Tanzania’s First Female President

was sworn in as Tanzania’s president at State House in Dar es Salaam on Friday, making history as the first woman to hold the top job in the East African country.

The 61-year-old’s inauguration comes two days after she announced the passing of President John Magufili

Born in Zanzibar, Tanzania’s semi-autonomous archipelago, in 1960, Hassan went to primary school and secondary school at a time when very few girls in Tanzania were getting educations as parents thought a woman’s place was that of wife and homemaker.

Tanzania's new president Samia Suluhu Hassan signs a book of condolences for former president John Magufuli.
Tanzania’s new president Samia Suluhu Hassan signs a book of condolences for former president John Magufuli.
Anthony Siame/EPA-EFE/Shuttersto

After graduating from secondary school in 1977, Hassan studied statistics and started working for the government, in the Ministry of Planning and Development. She worked for a World Food Program project in Tanzania in 1992 and then attended the University of Manchester in London to earn a postgraduate diploma in economics. In 2005, she earned a master’s degree in community economic development through a joint program between the Open University of Tanzania and Southern New Hampshire University in the U.S.

Hassan went into politics in 2000 when she became a member of the Zanzibar House of Representatives. In 2010, she won the Makunduchi parliamentary seat with more than 80% percent of the vote. She was appointed a Cabinet minister in 2014 and became vice-chairperson of the Constituent Assembly that drafted a new constitution for Tanzania, a role in which she won respect for deftly handling several challenges.

In 2015, Magufuli selected Suluhu Hassan as his running mate — a surprise choice over many more prominent members of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party.

Suluhu Hassan is also the country’s first president born in semi-autonomous Zanzibar. She attended school at a time when very few Tanzanian girls were offered the opportunity of an education outside the traditional roles of wife and homemaker. She is also a practicing Muslim.

Tanzanian activist Maria Sarungi said the significance of her background should not be underestimated in the context of Tanzanian politics.

In 1978, Suluhu married Hafidh Ameir, at present a retired agricultural officer. They have four children. Her daughter Mwanu Hafidh Ameir (born 1982), the couple’s second child, is a special seat member of the Zanzibar House of Representatives.

‘Time to stand together’

In her first public address as president, Suluhu Hassan — who is affectionately known as Mama Samia — said it was a difficult day in her political career.

“Today I have taken an oath different from the rest that I have taken in my career,” she said. “Those were taken in happiness. Today I took the highest oath of office in mourning.”

However she assured Tanzanians that Magufuli, “who always liked teaching,” had prepared her for the task ahead and encouraged national unity.

“This is the time to stand together and get connected,” she said. “It’s time to bury our differences and show love to one another and look forward with confidence.”

Suluhu Hassan will complete Magufuli’s second five-year term in office, which began in October 2020 after he won general elections. Hassan also announced 21 days of mourning for the former President as well as public holidays on March 22 and March 25, when Magufuli is due to be buried.

Tanzania's Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan, right, speaks during a tour of the Tanga region of Tanzania

We wish her well.

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

Michelle Obama Set To Be Inducted Into U.S. National Women’s Hall Of Fame

Forever First Lady Michelle Obama is being inducted into the U.S. National Women’s Hall of Fame

The organization released a statement announcing the induction, noting Obama’s influence as the first Black First Lady and her tireless advocacy for women and girls. During her two terms in the White House, Obama established Let’s Move!, an organization centered around ending childhood obesity, the Joining Forces organization supporting veterans, and Let Girls Learn, which supported the education of adolescent girls.

In addition to her humanitarian work, Obama also released ”Becoming,” the best-selling memoir in 2018, and won the 2020 Grammy for Best Spoken Word album. 

The National Women’s Hall of Fame said Obama’s induction was due to her being an, “Advocate, author, lawyer, and 44th First Lady of the United States – the first Black person to serve in the role – Michelle Obama has emerged as one of the most influential and iconic women of the 21st century. During her eight years as First Lady, Michelle Obama helped create the most welcoming and inclusive White House in history, transforming the White House into the ‘People’s House.’ Since leaving the White House, she has continued to have a profound public impact.” 

Obama is set to be inducted alongside the late iconic science fiction author Octavia E. Butler and NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson, who are both receiving posthumous inductions. 

The U.S. National Women’s Hall of Fame ceremony will take place in person on October 2, 2021, at the National Women’s Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls, New York. 

Congratulations, Mrs. Obama!

Photo Courtesy of OprahMag

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

Brehanna Daniels Makes History As The First Black Woman Hired As A Member Of A Nascar Crew

Brehanna Daniels has made history as the first Black woman in NASCAR’s pit crew as a tire changer.

27-year-old Daniels never envisioned a career in NASCAR racing, much less as a pit crew member. During her senior year of college at Norfolk State University, a random chance allowed her to try out for the pit crew, and she’s been in love ever since.

“I was sitting in the cafeteria, mid-bite of my Chick-fil-A sandwich, when my friend from the school’s athletic department, Tiffany, tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘Hey, NASCAR is holding tryouts for their pit crews on Wednesday, you should go.’ I looked at her like, ‘Girl, I don’t even watch NASCAR,’” Daniels recalled. 

A basketball point guard, Daniels pursued the opportunity, eventually being invited to join NASCAR’s pit crew member program after graduating in 2016. Her mere presence marked a shift for the historically white male sport. Out of almost 3,000 NASCAR drivers who have made it to the Cup level, only 16 have been women. It wasn’t even until 2013 that NASCAR got its first woman as a pit crew member. In 2017, Daniels made history as the first Black woman to work the pit crew for a NASCAR race, and in 2019 she became the first Black woman to work the pit crew for the Daytona 500 race. 

“God couldn’t have picked anybody else better to do the job. It takes a strong person to be able to make that change…knowing the history of NASCAR and the faces people are used to seeing on the track. Even though I was a little nervous at first because I didn’t know how I would be judged or looked at, I’m like, ‘You know what? Somebody has to do this, and I guess I’m going to be the one to do this,” Daniels told reporters.

On February 14th and 15th, Daniels worked the 63rd annual Daytona 500, making history as one of just three women working for the pit crew alongside Breanna O’Leary and Dalanda Ouendeno. Only five years into a historic run, Daniels is already reflecting on the weight of her presence in the sport. 

“At first, I think a lot of people were like, ‘She’s not doing it for real; she’s just here for show.’ But obviously, I got sent to the track to do my job, and I can do it well; otherwise, I wouldn’t have gotten here,” Daniels said.

Congratulations, Brehanna!

Photo Courtesy of @Mindless_BMD/Twitter

Source: Becauseofthemwecan

by
Keep Reading
In Career Gems By

Emmanuella wins Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards

Nigerian Comedienne Emmanuella has won Nickelodeon’s Kids Choice Award 2021, for Favourite African Social Media Star. She posted this on her Instagram handle, and thanked her family and fans for their massive support.

She wrote:

“Congratulations to me as I won the Favourite African Social Media Star category at the Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards 2021.

I am so happy to be a winner, thank you! To all my fans out there, I say thank you.

To all those who voted for me, I love you so much, this win would not have been possible without you.”

She was nominated alongside Nigerian comedy group, Ikorodu Bois, South African Magician, Wian Van Den Berg; Ugandan Youth Dance Group, Ghetto Kids, Kenyan social media sensation, Elsa Majimbo, and South African media personality, Bonang Matheba.

The Awards ceremony hosted by Kenan Thompson (Kenan, Saturday Night Live), the KCAs featured show-stopping performances by the talented Justin Bieber. He took the stage to sing hit songs “Intentions” with Quavo, “Anyone” and “Hold On.”

He leads the pack with five nominations this year, winning two.

Emmanuella was just five years old and on a family holiday when she partook in a comedy skit that would shoot her to stardom and win her four international awards.

In the skit titled, “My Real Face,” she deformed her face to avoid the wrath of the headmistress and her daughter.

Her catchphrase “This Is Not My Real Face Oh” quickly became household slang and a source of fascination for the kid whose actions and words defied her age.

Emmanuella’s daring yet hilarious actions evoked laughter and curiosity as to who the little girl was.

The Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards, also known as the KCAs or Kids’ Choice, is an annual American children’s awards ceremony show that is produced by Nickelodeon.

The show honours the year’s biggest television, movie, and music acts as voted by viewers worldwide on Nickelodeon networks.

Winners received a hollow orange blimp figurine, a logo outline for much of the network’s 1984–2009 era, which also functions as a kaleidoscope. (NAN)

 

by
Keep Reading

©2025. WomenofRubies. All Rights Reserved.