In 2010, IREX started the first Tech Age Girls (TAG) [11] project in Kyrgyzstan with 90 participants selected from 246 applications of young girls ages ranging from 14 to 17. For over six months they attended Information Technology (IT) and leadership trainings, designed and implemented community projects, and documented their experience via blogs. The 27 most active girls had an opportunity to attend a two-week summer conference. I recently interviewed alumna, Zhanara Asizova about her experience.
Zhanara is from Kant, and is currently a freshman at the National University of Kyrgyzstan, pursuing a degree in Economics. Before TAG, Zhanara used the internet rarely. Now she uses it every day and says that without it she feels like she is cut off from the rest of the world. “Without internet, I am deaf and blind,” she says.
What opportunities emerged for you after TAG?
I have more opportunities to help me grow. For example:
• Thanks to the knowledge that I received at the TAG conference, I applied and won a grant worth $1,650 from the Soros Foundation [12] Kyrgyzstan [13] and Youth Action Fund to implement a project entitled, "TAG Promote Volunteering.”
• I attended a Training of Trainers called "Effective use of Internet Resources" (also organized by the Soros Foundation Kyrgyzstan). At the training, I learned more in depth about the internet resources. Now I am a beginner IT-trainer.
• I became a member of an international organization AIESEC [14]. Now I have a chance to undergo internship in AIESEC’s international projects in over 100 countries.
Would you say that TAG influenced the way you see the world?
I realized that I must always learn and develop. It felt like we were taught to look into the future. Thanks to the technology trainings we learned how to get information. Also, communicating with US Peace Corps Volunteers made me realized that the world has so many interesting and useful things that don’t exist in our society. I realized that there is something to aspire to. I realized that by developing ourselves, we develop our society and further develop our country.
Zhanara, has TAG influenced your self-esteem and confidence?
TAG had great influence on my self-esteem and confidence. I knew that leadership qualities were in me and that I am a future leader, but I had to prove that. TAG chose the most active young female leaders of Kyrgyzstan. I am proud of all the finalists of TAG.
How do you use the skills acquired through TAG in your life?
Thanks to the skills acquired through the TAG, I achieved a lot. For example:
• In the summer after the conference, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) invited us to the summer school as IT trainers. We helped representatives of political parties in Kyrgyzstan make videos.
• In November I was invited to conduct an IT training for 20 English teachers from all regions of Kyrgyzstan.
• I'm also an ACCESS alumni and after participating in TAG, I was invited to work as an assistant coordinator of the «English Access Micro scholarship Program» where my main responsibility is to administer the website. The site is almost completed and will soon go live.
I know that this is only the beginning. What I did is nothing compared to what else I can do. I have many ideas on how to continue developing and how to develop my society and the TAG project. I want to take an active part in the implementation of TAG 2011 project in Kyrgyzstan.
Do you have any advice for future TAG participants?
Patience. There will be ups and downs, but every day you will become stronger and more successful. As the saying goes "it is not easy to pull out a fish from the pond." Work hard, learn, and you'll get what you want. Thanks to TAG, many great opportunities will open to you. So, go ahead, do not give up, go for it! You are a new wave of leaders of Kyrgyzstan. You are the future of our country. We believe in you!
It warms my heart to see that TAG is working and is transforming bright young girls like Zhanara into community leaders, with a technological twist. The second round of TAG will start in February 2011 so stay tuned for more on the new group as well as updates from alumna! If you have any questions about TAG in the meantime, please contact me.
Mehri Karyagdyyeva [15] is a Program Officer at IREX based in Ukraine