AK: Have you ever wondered how the intersection of technology and migration shaped
AK: the experiences of refugee women?
AK: What role does digitalization play in their journey towards empowerment?
AK: Welcome to Exploring Digital Spheres. This special episode is all about the
AK: unique challenges faced by refugee women from Mali and Central Africa as they
AK: navigate their new lives in Mauritania and within the tech industry.
AK: Follow our Women in Tech project team as they address issues about equality
AK: and equity in Mauritania's digital landscape.
Sarah: This episode of the Exploring Digital Spheres podcast takes us to Mauritania,
Sarah: a country in the Northwest Africa bordered by the Sahara Desert.
Sarah: Like many other places in the world, it is navigating the complex dynamics of
Sarah: gender, technology, and societal expectations.
Sarah: In the midst of this digital transformation, women are beginning to break down
Sarah: barriers and boundaries and make their mark on the tech sector.
Sarah: But this is no easy task, and women and marginalized groups face a multitude of challenges.
Sarah: They must overcome different power dynamics and multiple forms of discrimination
Sarah: that reinforce each other.
Sarah: In the next few minutes, we will introduce to you two remarkable refugee women,
Sarah: Fadimata Aisha Walid Mohamed Issa and Mouni Abdu Wahab from Mali and Central
Sarah: Africa, who have made significant contributions to Mauritania's tech industry.
Sarah: Their stories are intertwined with Mauritania's digital development,
Sarah: and we will illustrate this connection for you.
Sarah: My name is Sarah Spitz. As the project lead of the Women in Tech project,
Sarah: conducted by the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society,
Sarah: HIC, I will guide you through this episode.
Sarah: With my colleagues, I had the honor of traveling to Mauritania for a week.
Sarah: Together with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für internationale Zusammenarbeit, GIZ,
Sarah: and their Digital Transformation Center, DTC, in Mauritania,
Sarah: we organized a multi-stakeholder dialogue and an inspiring lecture in the capital
Sarah: of Mauritania, Naukshot.
Sarah: During the interactive discussions of the multi-stakeholder dialogue,
Sarah: we looked at strategies and promote diversity in the tech industry,
Sarah: with a particular focus on supporting women in rural areas.
Sarah: We also engaged in conversations about empowering refugee women from various
Sarah: African countries who face challenges related to limited access to digital infrastructure,
Sarah: digital education, devices and essential digital skills.
Sarah: The aim of the multi-stakeholder dialogue was to achieve a shared understanding
Sarah: of the perspectives, opportunities and problems that women face in this field.
Sarah: We also discussed strategies and measures to address these obstacles and promote
Sarah: equality and equity in Mauritania's technology sector, as well as to connect
Sarah: different stakeholders in this field with each other.
Sarah: Following the stakeholder dialogue, we had the privilege of interviewing Fadimata
Sarah: and Moni for this podcast episode.
Sarah: Whose insights shed light on the profound impact and significance of digitalization in their lives.
Sarah: This episode therefore centers on their difficult journey and their experiences
Sarah: as refugee women in Mauritania.
Sarah: They bring with them a wealth of knowledge, unique perspectives,
Sarah: and an unwavering resilience born at the intersection of migration and technology.
Sarah: Their compelling narratives are a testament to the transformative power of digital
Sarah: tools that allow them to overcome obstacles, redefine opportunities,
Sarah: and build cultural bridges while staying connected to their home countries.
Sarah: Before we dive into the interviews, we will now hear from Dr.
Sarah: Theresa Züger, who is a research lead at HIC.
Sarah: She's an expert on artificial intelligence and its societal impact,
Sarah: providing you with invaluable insights into how technology, particularly digital
Sarah: platforms, could help bridging the gender gap in Mauritania.
Theresa: To begin our exploration of gender representation in the tech industry in Mauritania,
Theresa: let's take a look at some statistics.
Theresa: In 2021, for instance, there was a significant gender gap in the tech industry
Theresa: in Mauritania, with women making up only 29% of the workforce.
Theresa: If we look in more detail between different roles within the tech industry,
Theresa: the discrepancies become even more glaring.
Theresa: In departments such as IT and tech teams, the proportion of women drops to only
Theresa: 21%. And in highly specialized areas such as cybersecurity, it falls to only 12% being women.
Theresa: But the gender gap in Mauritania is not limited to the tech sector only.
Theresa: It extends to various aspects of online presence.
Theresa: In early 2022, data showed that only 20% of LinkedIn users in Mauritania were
Theresa: women, indicating a significant gender gap in the workplace.
Theresa: This discrepancy is visible not only in professional networks.
Theresa: It also is evident on non-work-related social media platforms such as Facebook. book.
Theresa: There, only 35% of users identify as female, and this means that the majority is still male.
Theresa: This raises the important question about why the digital divide persists in
Theresa: Mauritania, and what impact it has on women's participation in the online world
Theresa: and in society in general.
Theresa: Diversity in technology is important for several reasons.
Theresa: First, it plays a critical role in ensuring equal power relations within the tech industry.
Theresa: Technology is the infrastructure of our modern society.
Theresa: And if it does not represent women and other marginalized groups,
Theresa: there is a risk that their particular needs and rights will be neglected or overlooked.
Theresa: Inclusivity in the tech industry not only promotes fairness,
Theresa: but also a more equal distribution of opportunity and influence.
Theresa: Secondly.
Theresa: Diverse teams have proven time and time again that they can create better products
Theresa: and services that have a greater chance of market success.
Theresa: Recent research has shown that simply the access to mobile phones can make a
Theresa: big difference, especially for women.
Theresa: They can help reduce gender inequality, improve access to health care and empower
Theresa: women to make informed decisions about their lives and their bodies.
Theresa: Besides all these challenges, there is still room for optimism and change.
Theresa: During the Women in Tech project in Mauritania, we had the honor to meet two
Theresa: young refugee women from Mali and from Central Africa.
Theresa: Both of them arrived in Mauritania during their childhood, escaping from their homeland.
Theresa: They grew up in the digital age and told us about their experiences, hopes and dreams.
Interviews: So, Fadimata, I'm very happy and delighted that you also are part of this podcast episode.
Interviews: And before we dive into the questions, I would like to give you the opportunity
Interviews: to introduce yourself briefly.
Interviews: Thank you. My name is Fadimata Eshaoulet Mohamed Issa.
Interviews: So, thank you. My name is Fadimata Eshaoulet Mohamed Issa. I'm 26 years old.
Interviews: I'm a refugee from Mali in Mauritania.
Interviews: Thank you. Can I ask you, when have you come to Mauritania? Bien sûr.
Interviews: Je suis là depuis 2012. So I've been here since 2012.
Interviews: Okay, wow, that's a long time. And nowadays, what are you doing in Nouakchott? What is your job?
Interviews: What do you do in Nouakchott at the moment? What is your job?
Interviews: I am a nurse. I am a nurse, actually.
Interviews: I am working as a nurse. But I also have my business.
Interviews: Along with that, I sell veils in the surroundings of Nouakchott.
Interviews: And this is a business that I have, aside of being a nurse. in the vicinity
Interviews: of the city of Nouakchott and other primary necessity products.
Interviews: Okay. And is your family and are your friends still in Mali?
Interviews: And how can you have contact to them right now here from Nakshat?
Interviews: Est-ce que votre famille et vos amis sont toujours en Mali? Et comment est-ce
Interviews: que vous les contactez à partir de Nakshat?
Interviews: J'arrive à garder le contact avec une partie de ma famille.
Interviews: I keep in touch with a part of my family and friends who have access to the
Interviews: internet via social media And I use that to be able to interact with my family,
Interviews: with a part of my family, because the other half, for example,
Interviews: cannot access Internet because they are in locations where there is no Internet
Interviews: connection or connectivity.
Interviews: Okay. Where and when did you learn how to use technical devices,
Interviews: social media, and the Internet?
Interviews: I would say that I have grown up in an environment where technology devices were available,
Interviews: so I had learned since a very young age to manipulate, to be working with and
Interviews: touching screens and telephones, so this is something that I have been introduced to at a very young age.
Interviews: I also can use some programs such as Windows, PowerPoint, Excel, Word, and other stuff.
Interviews: So as a young teenager, I was able to access all different kinds of social media.
Interviews: Back then, we had Viber, we had
Interviews: maybe Facebook and other applications that are not the ones used today.
Interviews: But since then, I think I've always almost always had access to internet and social media,
Interviews: To settle in a new society, in your case, here in Nouakchott,
Interviews: in Mauritania, what would you say is very helpful for refugee women?
Interviews: And what role does digitalization play in this context?
Interviews: So, I have, internet has helped me find my way through the country because I
Interviews: used Google Map to go wherever I want to go.
Interviews: And it also helped me finding jobs and new offers, because when I was in the
Interviews: refugee camp, there were opportunities of employment,
Interviews: but they were more or less closed to the wide public.
Interviews: It was a little bit oriented. So it has helped me find my way through job offers.
Interviews: Even if it didn't help me straight at the very first beginning,
Interviews: finding a job, it has helped me have a community of Mauritanian friends and
Interviews: people I have got to know.
Interviews: And after that, it helped me also find new jobs, new opportunities of employment.
Interviews: But most of all, it has helped me find and create a community of friends and
Interviews: people that I know and also get to know the country better and the habits and the life,
Interviews: the social life within Mauritania.
Interviews: That's great that you already have a network here in Mauritania.
Interviews: How do you stay in contact with family and friends in Mali?
Interviews: I keep in touch with other members of my family that are in different refugee
Interviews: camps, for example in Algeria, via social media, especially WhatsApp.
Interviews: But it is, even though it remains challenging because of the Internet,
Interviews: sometimes the network is not so good in some areas and others.
Interviews: So this WhatsApp, for example,
Interviews: these applications that allow us to be connected are so often interrupted by
Interviews: the lack of data flow or the insufficiency of data flow.
Interviews: Sometimes the videos are interrupted, for example, if they are sent.
Interviews: Sometimes there's absolutely no connectivity. And most of the time there is
Interviews: interruption when we are talking
Interviews: to each other, especially with the video camera, using video calls.
Interviews: I can only imagine how difficult that is.
Interviews: I heard that you are very active on social media, especially on TikTok.
Interviews: If you are using other platforms, I would also be interested in knowing which ones.
Interviews: Can you tell us why you use these platforms and what you want to achieve with it?
Interviews: So I use these social media and sometimes I get recognized in the street.
Interviews: Sometimes some Mauritanian people tell me, oh, this is Aisha from TikTok and they recognize me.
Interviews: TikTok is not the only platform that I use. There's also Instagram, Facebook, Twitter.
Interviews: And I mainly use those to find out more information about things that are interesting to me,
Interviews: and I also use that to have more information, but also to gather more clients
Interviews: for me to be able to sell more and commercialize my products.
Interviews: Do you think there are differences in the use and the access of devices,
Interviews: Wi-Fi, between women and men in your refugee community, but also in the rest
Interviews: of Mauritanian society?
Interviews: So I don't think that there's a difference in use between men and women.
Interviews: Actually, I don't see that difference. I don't see that there's anybody that
Interviews: is favored compared to somebody else.
Interviews: I think both use Internet the same way and have the same access to Internet.
Interviews: I think that people underestimate the use of social media.
Interviews: When it comes to my community, they perceive it as a way of value loss.
Interviews: For example, they say that young people expose themselves on social media,
Interviews: showing their lives, their vacancy, and themselves doing nothing.
Interviews: So I think they should understand that if used correctly,
Interviews: social media could be a very important tool for self-empowerment and professional growth.
Interviews: And it is also important to make some awareness campaigns on the use of networks
Interviews: in the corporate and cooperative sense, as well as on the dangers
Interviews: It is also important to me that somebody conducts sensitization operations to
Interviews: bring to the people's awareness,
Interviews: the importance and the positive uses of technology and of social media,
Interviews: but also the dangers and the negative aspects of it.
Interviews: Yes, that's true. They need to know both sides. How would you like to live in
Interviews: the foreseeable future? How would you like to live in the near future?
Interviews: I would like to be active on the different networks in my field of activity
Interviews: and be positively recognized on the networks.
Interviews: I would like to be an example of success, also to be the ambassador of certain
Interviews: networks in order to show that their use is harmful or possible.
Interviews: The positive depends on the individual.
Interviews: Networks can be a good lever of change and a lever of support when they are used as they should be.
Interviews: So, I would like to be more and more active on social media.
Interviews: I would like to be an inspiration for other generations that are coming on how
Interviews: to use social media positively to expand,
Interviews: grow, grow and be more professional, more known to others.
Interviews: And I think that advocacy operations should be conducted to bring to the awareness
Interviews: of the people the good parts and the bad parts of using social media.
Interviews: And then we already are at our last question. What role will digital tools play
Interviews: in your future? So, we are already in our last question.
Interviews: What is the role that digital tools play in your life, in your future?
Interviews: Already digital tools are at the center of my new life.
Interviews: Creating content is not possible without distribution support and more accessibility
Interviews: of easy use remains quite digital.
Interviews: To reach my goals it is important to train me even more on the use of social
Interviews: networks and applications
Interviews: such as video editing applications, photos and sound devices,
Interviews: as well as the use of sound and video recording devices.
Interviews: Digital devices are in the core of my daily work,
Interviews: so we cannot produce or share content without this device's support.
Interviews: I would like to be able to benefit from further training.
Interviews: When it comes to video making,
Interviews: video editing, sound making and editing,
Interviews: and it is important for me to know how to use both applications that are audio
Interviews: and video and how to best manage the use of them.
Interviews: Thank you so much Fatimata. If you would like to say some last words,
Interviews: we would be open for that.
Interviews: But we are also very happy that you gave us such an insightful interview.
Interviews: Thank you very much Fatimata. If you want to say one last word or say something
Interviews: more, if you add something, we would be very happy to listen to you.
Interviews: But just know for the moment that we are very, very happy to have received you
Interviews: and to have been able to share this interview with you.
Interviews: And know that it is the same for me, because it has already taken me to have
Interviews: reflections on the future.
Interviews: And there, I know that it has helped me a lot, it has helped me a lot lately.
Interviews: It's like someone opened a door for me to say what I think so that I can have
Interviews: a personal development in the future.
Interviews: So it's very important to me also to express my thanks to you because your questions
Interviews: and everything that has been happening these last days has allowed me to have
Interviews: my own reflection and projection in the future.
Interviews: Now I'm questioning myself about what it is that I want to do,
Interviews: where do I want to take it from now.
Interviews: And these are thoughts that have been coming with everything that has been happening these last days.
Interviews: So thank you very much for this opportunity. And it's already that I would be
Interviews: the example for refugee women to know that we, refugee.
Interviews: Women, are gifted with intelligence and we can do more than they think of us.
Interviews: So it's also important for me, this empowerment aspect that us as refugee women
Interviews: are smart enough and valuable enough to be able to do more than is expected from us.
Interviews: Yes, you definitely, both of you, you showed us that. The last couple of days,
Interviews: we are so glad that we could work together with you.
Interviews: You two, you have absolutely shown us that and we have been very happy to be
Interviews: able to collaborate and work with you. Thank you so much.
Interviews: We are very delighted that you are here, that you are recording this podcast episode with us.
Interviews: I am so happy that we could meet during this week in Mauritania.
Interviews: And before we dive into the questions, maybe you would like to briefly introduce
Interviews: yourself to the audience.
Interviews: The pleasure is all mine because I'm also having the opportunity to share my
Interviews: experience as a woman that is coming into a country that I have never known
Interviews: before, where I don't speak the language,
Interviews: and it's an opportunity for me to share my experience.
Interviews: Yes, the pleasure is definitely on our side as well.
Interviews: Could you let us know your name again and your age and maybe a little bit what
Interviews: you nowadays do here in Aukchart in Mauritania?
Interviews: My name is Moini Abdullwahab. I'm a refugee from Central Africa.
Interviews: I'm here in Mauritania since 2013.
Interviews: I'm 21 years old. I'm an entrepreneur, and I do a transformation of agroalimentary
Interviews: products that are local.
Interviews: And I'm a client attendant at Depan App, which is the first mobile app,
Interviews: 100% Mauritanian, that has to do with assisting and fixing cars and automobiles in Mauritania.
Interviews: Okay, wow, this is very interesting. So you have two different careers.
Interviews: Is that correct? Did I understand that correct? Correct.
Interviews: So, I'm one of six people that are interested and working on agro-elementary
Interviews: product transformation.
Interviews: That's on one hand. At the same time, I work as a communications service.
Interviews: It's a service that I do at home. I have my computer and a phone number.
Interviews: I receive calls. In fact, I send the packaging and the packaging.
Interviews: At the same time, I work from home using my computer with this app.
Interviews: I receive calls, phone calls, and I give orders maybe for booting cars or unbooting
Interviews: cars or transporting them or ordering reparation or fixing cars that are not working properly.
Interviews: Okay, thank you so much. I would like to focus on both jobs a little bit later on in the interview.
Interviews: And right now, because both of these jobs are in the tech sector,
Interviews: I would like to ask one or two more questions about that.
Interviews: And then we go over to another questions about the job. I'm very interested,
Interviews: or we are very interested, in knowing what is important for you as a refugee
Interviews: woman to settle into a new society here in Mauritania.
Interviews: Which role is digitalization playing in settling into a new country?
Interviews: Internet and all these. As a refugee woman, digitalization plays a big role in our lives.
Interviews: So internet and digital devices are very important to me.
Interviews: Number one, they allow me to be in contact with my family that is living abroad.
Interviews: So it's very important for me. That's a support that I constantly need.
Interviews: And as far as my work is concerned,
Interviews: it allows me, I'm working online as you already And it also allows me to conduct
Interviews: works of marketing and vending and selling my products to the outward.
Interviews: Because as a married woman, it's also important for me to be physically present in my house.
Interviews: But that does not keep me from doing my work.
Interviews: Yes, I totally understand that and can relate to her ideas about that.
Interviews: Could you also ask her how she got the first time access to Wi-Fi when she came to Mauritania?
Interviews: Because I can imagine if you enter a new country that this is a very big obstacle.
Interviews: As a refugee woman in Mauritania,
Interviews: I want to establish this, that there is absolutely no difference when it comes
Interviews: to accessing Internet services between us and any other Mauritanian person,
Interviews: any other Mauritanian citizen.
Interviews: Thank you for clarifying that to us. Yes.
Interviews: Okay, let's talk a little bit more about your business.
Interviews: You already said that you are running the business from home.
Interviews: Maybe you can let us know a little bit more how you got to be an entrepreneur
Interviews: and what this all is about.
Interviews: At the same time that I work as an internet app assistant,
Interviews: I also have an assistant of my own, which is helping me actually sell products
Interviews: and target new clients and working via internet.
Interviews: She is working on social media with me and we are transforming,
Interviews: selling agro-alimentary products and also cosmetic products.
Interviews: So this is something that I definitely have been doing with the assistance of
Interviews: somebody that I have hired to that purpose.
Interviews: So you need social media, as you said, like Facebook or other social media to sell your products?
Interviews: So, absolutely, that's absolutely correct.
Interviews: Right now, I have a WhatsApp group that I have created and that is helping me
Interviews: integrate and find more people, more clients,
Interviews: and a Facebook page that allows me to expose my products and collect more and more clients every day.
Interviews: And when it comes to delivery, my clients are also restaurants and small areas.
Interviews: So you already have different people and different establishments where you work with already.
Interviews: Yeah, that's great. Right. If we focus a little bit about the future,
Interviews: how would you like to develop and develop your business?
Interviews: In fact, I would first like to...
Interviews: Before sharing with you my wishes when it comes to my business,
Interviews: I would like to say that I, first of all, and before everything,
Interviews: wish for peace in my country of origin.
Interviews: So I would like to have that peace for my country and my people.
Interviews: After that, I would love to be able to go back home,
Interviews: open a business like the one that I
Interviews: have here and be able to establish
Interviews: maybe a website first of
Interviews: all and then a whole chain that is in Africa that that would be the the first
Interviews: 100% African chain that is specialized in selling African
Interviews: products and my products.
Interviews: That sounds very wonderful. I hope you can, in the future, have the possibility
Interviews: to grow your business as you wish.
Interviews: I hope so too. Can I ask you about maybe female advocates in your community,
Interviews: in your home country or here in Mauritania?
Interviews: Who inspired you to be an entrepreneur in this business?
Interviews: It's through her that I had the idea to start doing business.
Interviews: So my first inspiration is my mother, because she's also an entrepreneur herself,
Interviews: so she has her own business, and I have developed in an environment that prunes women's work.
Interviews: So in and when
Interviews: it comes to my community no i unfortunately don't
Interviews: know any refugees that work at the same scale as we do even though there are
Interviews: a few of them that have also their projects and and that are running their business
Interviews: but it remains always maybe on a smaller scale,
Interviews: So you are a female advocate now in your community for other women, right?
Interviews: Yes, we have already started doing that.
Interviews: It's not only an inspiration. More than that, we are financing new activities for refugee women.
Interviews: That we have so far financed 15 income generating activities for other women.
Interviews: To help them get their life started and get back on their feet and start a new life.
Interviews: But our dream is to be able to find us not only refugee women but also other women,
Interviews: other people in Mauritania that are willing to work but do not have the means
Interviews: and tools that are necessary to implement that work. That is amazing.
Interviews: Could you let us know about this workshop a little bit more about these measures
Interviews: you you have taken for these people?
Interviews: I participated in a entrepreneurship program in 2021 which allowed me to do
Interviews: a training on entrepreneurship.
Interviews: I have participated in a workshop, a training.
Interviews: At the end of this training, meaning a financing of 2 million EGIAs was given to me.
Interviews: So this has allowed me to kick-start my business, and I think it's something very important.
Interviews: That was in 2021, and after that I have created an association of mine that
Interviews: is concerning women, that is receiving and working with women between 18 and 35 years.
Interviews: It is true that we are in a new country, but that does not mean that we should
Interviews: be living with our hands tied together, not doing anything.
Interviews: It is true that Mauritania is doing a lot to us and that we are not feeling
Interviews: foreign, except for language barrier, for example.
Interviews: We should also work to be able to be self-sufficient and then help others.
Interviews: So, my goal is not only to help refugees from my own country,
Interviews: but also from other countries, maybe from Mali, from other countries that are
Interviews: living in the same conditions that we are, And at the end of the day,
Interviews: being also able to give back to Mauritanian people,
Interviews: for example, and Mauritanian women by integrating and incorporating them in our audience.
Interviews: In our members, for example, if they want to work with us.
Interviews: I think these ideas and also the passion to connect these people is honestly
Interviews: stunning. Yeah, this is a very big topic.
Interviews: I would love to go deeper into this, but I have one question I think that is
Interviews: very interesting to ask. So,
Interviews: as you have already mentioned, Mauritania is helping refugee women a lot.
Interviews: And I think, yeah, it sounds like you really have a lot of help to create new
Interviews: businesses or create a new life here.
Interviews: I would be also interested in the differences between men and women coming to Mauritania.
Interviews: Are you seeing differences there or is this more a helping environment or maybe
Interviews: she has an idea about that?
Interviews: Yes, refugee men and refugee women have the same problem.
Interviews: So, the main problem of refugees in Mauritania is that, first of all,
Interviews: let me start by saying that, yes, they both face the same problems, men and women.
Interviews: And the main problem resides in the fact that most of them have never been to school.
Interviews: So even if they try to find something to do, a work, a job, it is difficult
Interviews: for them because because of instruction levels and because they have not been to school.
Interviews: So I think that conducting these operations are important for everybody, men and women.
Interviews: These are people who like to work, who have ideas, but they don't have the means to start.
Interviews: There are people who have ideas,
Interviews: who want to work, but do not have the necessary tools to get started.
Interviews: So, education would be a first step to help people educate themselves,
Interviews: have more language skills to connect with the new community and the new society?
Interviews: Sure, so in
Interviews: our days about 80% of any business is conducted via social media and with technology.
Interviews: If you can't read, you cannot access that.
Interviews: If you cannot access that, you lose
Interviews: a very big part, an opportunity to be working and to be a leader in your.
Interviews: Working environment. You find 80% of women who don't even know what a phone is.
Interviews: About 80% of women, of refugee women, do not even know what a smartphone is.
Interviews: They don't know how to use it. They don't know their rights, they don't try to learn.
Interviews: They don't know their rights, they don't try to learn.
Interviews: As other refugee women who have had better chances, better opportunities,
Interviews: I think it's up to us to gather these other women and to explain to them the
Interviews: role of technology, how they could use it.
Interviews: So after education and language skills, there has to be access to devices, to Wi-Fi.
Interviews: Which devices are you usually using?
Interviews: Smartphones and computers.
Interviews: Okay, so there are also computers you can use? Yes.
Interviews: So HCR has established a center for refugee women to be able to learn how to use internet,
Interviews: and digital devices that myself have been a beneficiary of this center.
Interviews: I've been there and I have learned how to use better my electronic devices.
Interviews: Oh, that is great, I think, to know how to use your mobile phone or how to use a laptop.
Interviews: That helps you definitely to build a different future for yourself.
Interviews: So when I was back home, as you can understand, my country is not a very big developed country.
Interviews: So when I was back home, I had never heard of what she has called Android.
Interviews: I have never heard of Android or smartphones.
Interviews: It's only after coming to Mauritania that I touched a smartphone for the very
Interviews: first time. And now it is part of your business.
Interviews: Sure, it's the main reason why I have had my opportunity and have become today an entrepreneur.
Interviews: It's thanks to these devices. So, this question may be obsolete,
Interviews: but how is the role of digital devices, or which role will digital devices and
Interviews: tools play in your future?
Interviews: So, I cannot imagine a future without electronic devices and without our mobile
Interviews: phones and our computers.
Interviews: They have become almost part of us, but definitely a part of our work and our
Interviews: business that is conducted in the future.
Interviews: I hope you will be very successful with your business.
Interviews: I thank you so much for this insightful interview. Thank you so much for participating.
Interviews: And I'm so glad that I got to meet you this week here in Mauritania.
Interviews: So all my thanks go to you because this is the very first time in my life that I am being interviewed.
Interviews: I am discovering this world, what it is, what it has, and thank you for this opportunity.
Sarah: As we conclude this episode, we encourage you to reflect on the importance of
Sarah: diversity and inclusion in the tech industry and how it can drive innovation
Sarah: and create a more equitable society.
Sarah: We hope you have been inspired by the stories shared here today,
Sarah: and we invite you to stay connected with us as we continue to explore the ever-evolving
Sarah: digital spheres around the world. Thank you for joining.
Sarah: The Women in Tech project took place from December 2022 to December 2023.
Sarah: Throughout this period, our project team dedicated their efforts to creating
Sarah: innovative knowledge transfer formats and inspirational lectures in collaboration
Sarah: with local stakeholders from academia,
Sarah: politics, business and civil society across four different countries worldwide.
Sarah: The project is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development,
Sarah: BMZ, and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für internationale Zusammenarbeit, GIZ.
AK: This podcast was edited by Sarah Spitz. Scientific input by Dr. Teresa Züger.
AK: Interviews with Fadima Tza'aisha Waleh Mohamed Issa and Moini Abdul-Waab.
AK: Translation by Marie Blümel. Additional voice by Sound and recording by.
