The MTN Business App of the Year Awards is the leading award ceremony in its category and is one that recognises the country’s top creative thinkers driving disruption and change. Previous winners have gone on to launch their apps internationally, been acquired by blue-chip corporates and have become well known South African digital products in their own rights. We outline SovTech’s sponsorship of the MTN Women in STEM award for 2019.
SovTech sponsored the Best Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Technology) Solution award. This coveted category recognises and celebrates the great work being done by women in the STEM field. This solution can be of any form but it should inspire and showcase great skill and achievement in the different fields.
As a previous winner of an award at the 2017 Edition of MTN Business App Awards, SovTech understands first hand the impact of winning such an accolade.
In an unprecedented outcome, there was a tie at the top. The award was therefore awarded to 2 distinct and deserving companies, LocTransie and My Pregnancy Journey.
This app allows parents and caregivers to monitor and keep track of their children’s school transportation in real-time. The free app keeps parents informed via SMS of delays or problems along the route, and the driver can alert parents about emergencies immediately. Schools can track when learners enter or leave the premises as well.
2. My Pregnancy Journey (www.mypregnancyjourney.co.za)
My Pregnancy Journey’s aim is to empower all women with everything they need to know about pregnancy health and parenting. We want to inspire our moms in a positive way when raising the next generation. Every mom and baby matters, and deserve a beautiful journey.
We believe STEM education can spark tech innovations that impact our daily lives. Upskilling the female workforce into STEM roles will add billions to national gross domestic product in future. SovTech’s support goes beyond just economics. As society we have a moral duty to make sure that women can participate equally in the high growth areas of technologically-skilled jobs and have noticed the growing trends of women in the tech industry making a difference.
We have embraced that impact and have been supporting it for years by actively seeking to help women looking to enter and excel in the tech industry.
Gender bias in the tech industry keeps many women from considering STEM careers. Only 25% of computing jobs are held by women and this has been declining for years. Only 2% of all IT patents from 1980 to 2010, were by female-only invention teams. It is not ideal to have technology being created for a diverse population to be formed by a generally homogeneous group alone.
SovTech’s staff compliment is 22% female ranging from Developers, Managers and Testers. It is our mission to actively increase the female representation statistics in tech across the board. We are also active supporters of WomenThinkCode and other female tech initiatives.
