Committed to connecting the world

Women in Cyber Mentorship Programme 2022

Women in Cyber, the second year of this programme, engages role models in the field of cybersecurity and connects them with talented women in Africa, the Arab region, and Asia-Pacific.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams (FIRST) and EQUALS, the global partnership for gender equality in the digital age of which ITU is a co-founder, jointly organize the programme. It is key to ongoing efforts of ITU-BDT to close the digital gender divide, by mainstreaming gender-focused activities across our priorities.

The programme is an outcome of the CyberDrill 2020 Empowering Women in Cybersecurity webinar, where the need for role models and mentorship was identified as pivotal to increase the number of women leaders in cybersecurity.

It is made up of three parts, featuring monthly mentorship circles with activities including inspirational webinars and technical and soft skills training courses. All activities will be delivered online over six months from April to September 2022.

8 March 2022: Women in Cyber Mentorship Programme Launch Event

DOCUMENTS

	Invitation letter		Registration: Apply for the ITU Women in Cyber Mentorship Programme
	Calendar of events
	WiC Mentee cohort 2021 Meet Mentors 2021 Meet WiC 2021 Envoys

PROGRAMME STRUCTURE

INSPIRE: Four keynote webinars: Featured speakers are well-known women in cybersecurity showcasing their career paths, hence promoting role models and the perception of women as valuable additions to the cybersecurity workforce.

TRAIN: Six technical and soft skills training courses: to provide participants with skills for professional and personal development.

EMPOWER: Two mentorship circle sessions: a live platform for participants to further explore professional and personal development topics with high-level women in cybersecurity.

TARGET AUDIENCE

Who should attend:

This rollout of the Women in Cyber Mentorship Programme is being offered specifically to women residing in the Africa, Arab regions and Asia and Pacific. By limiting regional participation, the programme aims to provide women support in their local cybersecurity communities.

Africa: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Arab States: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, State of Palestine, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen.

Asia Pacific: Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Kiribati, Korea, Lao P.D.R., Malaysia, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Viet Nam.

Note: Upon registration through the dedicated link, the WiC Inspirational Keynote Webinars were open to the general public. The trainings and mentorship circles were open exclusively to eligible women to the programme.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

To be eligible to participate in the Women in Cyber Mentorship Programme, interested women must have:

Minimum 2-3 years junior level experience in the field of cybersecurity, or seeking to enter the cybersecurity workforce from another junior level ICT/STEM position.
The programme will be delivered in English. Participants must have a good working knowledge of English.
A computer and stable internet connection.
There are no age restrictions.

Note: The eligibility criteria are not applicable to participants wishing to attend the WiC Inspirational Keynote Webinars.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Program seats are limited.
The delivery platform for the webinars and training is Zoom. The mentorship circles will take place on Converve.
Selected participants must register for all three parts of the mentorship programme (i.e. inspirational keynote webinars, trainings, and mentorship circles).
Selected applicants to the mentorship circles will be contacted by email by the end of April 2022.