Girls in ICT Day

TATT Bytes
September 2012

 

Daughters of TATT staff

Mr. Cris Seeecheran speaks to the girls about the role of TATT

 

 Girls look at the mobile spectrum unit
Mr. Charles Frost shows the girls how the mobile unit works

 One of the best ways to encourage children to find their passion and forge long and satisfying careers is to give them early exposure to as many fields as possible.

This was the idea behind TATT’s “Bring Your Daughter to Work Day,” an activity created to provide the daughters of TATT employees with a chance to experience a day at work at an organisation that utilises information and communication technologies (ICT) in the regulation of Trinidad and Tobago’s telecommunications and broadcasting sectors.

Held on April 12, 2012 – during the 2012 Easter vacation, “Bring Your Daughter to Work Day” was hosted by TATT in recognition of “Girls in ICT Day” an initiative of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). The ITU is the United Nations’ specialised agency for ICTs. “Girls in ICT Day” is to be celebrated annually on April 26th and is meant to highlight girls’ interests and strengths, as well as to encourage them to choose careers in ICT.

The event was part of the ITU’s World Telecommunications and Information Society Day (WTISD) initiatives for 2012. This year’s WTISD theme is “Women and Girls in ICT” (see page 2).

Daughters of TATT employees ages 5 to 18 came to the Authority’s Barataria office for a day of activities that included greetings from TATT’s Chief Executive Officer, Cris Seecheran and Executive Officer of Finance, Cynthia Reddock-Downes respectively.

Sarah Marie Boswell-Inniss is involved with the simulation of a radio station

The girls learnt about the work of TATT during a presentation by Balchan Guinness. They were also treated to a tour of the office and saw first-hand how some of the technologies used for monitoring the telecommunication and broadcasting sectors, such as the mobile monitoring and broadcast monitoring systems, worked.

The girls also spent some time with their parents to better understand their jobs, in addition to participating in ICT-related games and activities, snacks and lunch, and finally a movie for the younger ones.

The older girls were also treated to a special workshop where they learned how to protect themselves in cyberspace.

In his welcome remarks, Mr. Seecheran, encouraged the girls to choose a career in ICTs while Mrs. Reddock-Downes told the girls that ICTs such as movie cameras, microphones and editing equipment are used in producing exciting movies such as Princess Diaries, Beauty and the Beast and Pocahontas.

Staff daughter in a group
The group of girls pose for a group shot