GCash shared how it empowers women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields at the TESDA Gender and Development International Webinar, which explored gender-responsive Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
In the discussion titled, “Enabling More Women In STEM Fields and in the Digital Ecosystem”, GCash chief strategy officer Rowena Zamora highlighted how crucial it is to have more women in technology, especially for a finance platform like GCash. Women make up 57pe of GCash users. Two out of three GSave users are also women, and of this number, 7 out of 10 come from outside Metro Manila. Women are also leading among users of GCash’s Pera Outlet program, which transforms sari-sari stores in the country into GCash hubs where owners can earn an additional monthly income of up to P10, 000.
Some of the training GCash has provided to women communities include a Data Science Scholarship Program in partnership with For The Women Foundation, which increased the new job placement rate of scholars by 76 percent; and Elevate GAIL (Generative AI Learning) with Connected Women, which equipped nearly 100 women with skills in basic AI principles and application.
“Most of the For The Women Foundation scholars are not really into technology. Some are teachers, some are secretaries,” shared GCash vice president for corporate communications and public affairs Gilda Maquilan at a separate panel discussion. “But because of the training, there are more opportunities in Machine Learning and Data Labeling that provide alternative options for women, especially in the tech space.”
GCash has also been reaching out to schools, such as the University of the Philippines Diliman with the GTalks program, and the Far Eastern University Manila through the DICT’s Girls in ICT Day Event – seeking to empower female students in the STEM fields.
