Internet Access and Training Program (IATP)

IATP News - February 2007

Moldovan Girls from Disadvantaged Families Closing the Technology Gap

TAG participant Galina Sofromova learns computer
basics

Over 55 Moldovan schoolgirls mastered computer skills in February as part of the second IATP Tech Age Girls project, which is working to inspire girls to serve their communities, learn to be active leaders, and to create new opportunities for themselves and their classmates.

In February IATP sponsored a series of computer trainings for TAG participants at the IATP Training Laboratory in Chisinau, the Independent Internet Centers (IIC) in Causeni and Ungheni, Regional Center for Women Support in Comrat, and the Dacia Regional Resources Center for Youth in Soroca, Moldova.

TAG is an IREX project designed to equip Moldovan girls from disadvantaged families and rural areas with technology skills to help them secure a brighter future. Many Moldovan girls from disadvantaged families, especially from smaller towns with less access to information, have left to seek work abroad, and often end up in illegal business. Without access to information, these categories of young women lack necessary knowledge for the enrollment to university, or necessary skills to get a job in their hometown. Part of the employment problem for women is also a fact that they are traditionally considered less technically competent than men are; this prejudice often prevents young women themselves from focusing on achieving necessary level of computer literacy.

At computer basics trainings conducted by IATP Trainer Petru Burdian, IIC administrators Nina Boicu and Olga Pendus, trainer of Regional Center for Women Support Roman Starchiuk, and Dacia’s Internet Technology Program Coordinator Ghenadie Cepurneac, girls discovered basics of computer operations. The attendees learned about operating systems, mastered skills for managing files and folders, and explored different software. Trainers explained how to create documents, edit texts, work with tables, and to save information to various media. In February, over 55 schoolchildren mastered computer skills within the framework of the project.

Within the framework of the project IATP is to train over 85 schoolchildren from Chisinau, Balti, Ungheni, Comrat, Causeni, and Soroca. The next step of IATP trainings the attendees are to continue studying computer and Internet technology and master skills for online communication and website development. They also are to create personal websites and participate in two country-wide online discussions.