WITIN founder, Alade bags 2019 international tech playmaker awards

The founder of Women in Technology in Nigeria (WITIN), Martha Omoekpen Alade, has won the Community Impact award at the 2019 Technology Playmaker Awards.

Alade won the Community Impact award category using technology to drive socio-economic empowerment in Nigeria in order to help 20,000 women and girls out of poverty by 2022.

Technology Playmaker Awards celebrate the achievements of women in the tech industry and winners of the second edition of the awards came from Nigeria, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Mexico and the United States. This year, the awards were open to global nominations, building on a European focus last year, and drew hundreds of entries from over 60 countries.

Announcing the recipients of the 2019 Technology Playmaker Awards, in London, one of the world’s largest e-commerce companies and a digital technology leader, the Chief Executive Officer, Booking.com, Gillian Tans, said: “we received an exceptionally high calibre of nominations from every corner of the world and, it is my pleasure to congratulate all of our inspiring finalists and winners.

“Their stories highlight the breadth and scale of achievements that women at all stages of their tech careers are making every day. “We recognize the need to shine a light on role models in the tech industry, and set out to create a forum that brings together leading female technologists from different backgrounds to exchange ideas and perspectives and build connections with the aim to inspire future generations and achieve equal gender representation for women in tech,” she added.

Congratulating Alade, the British High Commissioner, Ms Catriona Laing, said: “I am so delighted that Martha has been recognised with this prestigious award for her contribution in driving socio-economic empowerment in Nigeria, especially for women and girls. We hope that Martha’s achievement can act as a trailblazer inspiring more women and girls from all walks of life from education to politics to business, to aspire to the top.”

The pioneer Nigeria’s Minister of Communications and Technology, Dr. Omobola Johnson, also congratulated Alade.

The former minister on her twitter handle wrote: ‘‘well deserved recognition @aladematha. Thank you again for your work with the CommTech Ministry to establish Digital Girls Clubs across the country. Good luck!’’

Now in its second year, the awards recognise women across the global technology scene that are trailblazing new paths, creating innovative products and experiences, positively impacting communities and inspiring future generations. Eight prizes were awarded including seven individual category awards, one employer award, and the overall 2019 Technology Playmaker of the Year award.

The seven categories recognized the tech contributions of women in areas ranging from positive business impact, innovative use of digital tools and emerging technologies, community impact and sustainable practices, rising tech talent and an organization that is demonstrating a commitment to achieving gender diversity in IT and technology.