Girls in ICT Day 2025 Pacific Celebration

Background

International Girls in ICT Day is celebrated worldwide every year on the fourth Thursday of April with the objectives of encouraging girls and young women to pursue STEM education and careers, engaging the community, and promoting collaboration through partnerships. It aims to address the core challenge of low women presence in the field of STEM education, including in information and communication technologies.  This gap is also prevalent in the Pacific. The UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2023-2027) for the Pacific signed by the UN agencies and the Governments recognizes the need for inclusion under Pillar 2 of its 4 pillars (Planet, People, Prosperity and Peace). The People pillar envisions and recognizes in particular the need for digital inclusion.

“By 2027, more people, particularly those at risk of being left behind, benefit from more equitable access to resilient, and gender-responsive, quality basic services, food security/nutrition and social protection systems”

Girls in ICT Day provides an opportunity for girls and young women to see and be exposed to the benefit of ICT in enabling their career aspirations. To date, over 377,000 girls and young women have taken part in more than 11,400 celebrations of International Girls in ICT Day in 171 countries worldwide. In 2025, the theme for GICT is “Girls in ICT for inclusive digital transformation“. The ICT sector is a growing sector for education in both developed and developing countries. This means that qualified female students in technical fields around the world have significant opportunities available to them. These are excellent opportunities, particularly for highly skilled girls and young women who are still a minority when it comes to STEM education and careers. Developing initiatives and activities to promote and encourage gilrs to take up study in STEM and ICT is hence needed.

Pacific Girls in ICT Day 20​24 launching event, 2 May 2024

Drawing upon the success of national and regional programmes for Girls in ICT, the Pacific Girls in ICT Day Programme was launched on 2 May 2024, during the PITA AGM and Annual Business Forum and Expo, held from 29 April to 2 May, 2024, in Vanuatu. The launch was a collaborative effort with national governments, UN agencies, the Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association (PITA), and the Pacific Telecommunications Council (PTC).

Success stories

Over a period of 7 months, from 2 May to 11 December 2024, over 2000 girls and 500 boys across the Pacific participated in activities aimed at raising awareness and building skills in ICT and STEM. In Vanuatu, more than 10 girls and 1 boy engaged in three activities, including women and girls’ engineering networking sessions and two interviews with local radio stations. In Samoa, 54 girls and 9 boys participated in the Girls in ICT Samoa event, organized by the Office of the Regulator Samoa and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology Samoa on 7 May 2024, featuring a high-level panel discussion with inspiring female ICT leaders, experts, and participation. In Tonga, over 51 girls and 23 boys took part in three events: a Youth ICT Symposium, an Awareness Program, and an ICT Digital Literacy Training. In the Federated States of Micronesia, more than 520 girls and 20 boys joined five cybersecurity and online safety training sessions. In Kiribati, over 600 girls attended five activities focused on basic ICT skills, Google services, cybersecurity, essential ICT tools, and relevant ICT legislation by the government of Kiribati. In Papua New Guinea, 344 girls engaged in a series of awareness talks, including Girls in ICT Day, a scholarship program related to the NICTA Girls in ICT Tertiary Scholarship for 2024, and discussions on cybersecurity and online safety. In Nauru, over 620 girls and 490 boys attended Online Safety awareness sessions organized in collaboration with the Department of ICT. Additional digital skills training was provided by CISCO, which offered sessions on data science and cybersecurity to nearly 100 participants, as well as a webinar by the Pacific Telecommunication Council, titled “From Classroom to Boardroom: Navigating Career Paths in Tech,” attracting 20 participants. The virtual final event held on 6 December 2024 was attended by 92 participants.

​Pacific Girls in ICT Day 2024 final event, 6 December 2024​

This year, the Pacific Girls in ICT Day launching event was planned to connect the Digital Hubs in the Pacific. Participants from the established Digital Hubs across the Pacific will be virtually joining the event.
 
The participants joined the Digital Hubs of the Smart Villages and Smart Islands initiative that ITU has been leading and implementing in 10 countries in the Pacific in collaboration with governments and partners. These initiatives aimed to extend the benefits of digital transformation to rural and remote communities, ensuring that no one is left behind.
 
​In collaboration with Smart Islands communities, Pacific governments, national stakeholders, UN Resident Coordinators and UN agencies in the Pacific, the Joint SDG Fund, the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts (DITRDCA, Australia), the European Union, the Asian Development Bank, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC, Japan), as well as academic and civil society partners in the Pacific, we have successfully launched Digital Hubs in the Smart Villages and Smart Islands, including: South Malekula in Vanuatu; Maprik in Papua New Guinea; Hunga, Vava’u in  Tonga; Jabwor, Jaluit Atoll in Marshall Islands; Tonoas in Micronesia (FSM); Rotuma in Fiji, and Tamana in Kiribati. A digital hub will be launched in Nauru by the end of July. 

Objective

To launch Pacific Girls in ICT Day 2025 and enhance partnerships to scale out the programme in the Pacific.

Expected outcomes

Enhanced awareness of the Pacific Girls in ICT Day Programme,Increased commitment and interests from governments, industry, development organizations, UN agencies, and civil society in strengthening the Pacific Girls in ICT Day programme for this year.

Targeted participants

Honourable guests from UN Resident Coordinator’s Office, Government Ministries, Departments, Agencies and Commissions, teachers, students, girls and young women, and other community members of the Smart Villages and Smart Islands in the Pacific.

Download the full 2025 event report!

Provisional Agenda

Event Details:

  • Date: Wednesday, 16 July 2025
  • Time: 14:00-16:00 (GMT +12)
  • Venue: TBC

14:00 – 14:30

Introduction

MC:

  • Ms Rury Demsey, ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Opening remarks

  • Ms Atsuko Okuda, Regional Director, ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Special address

  • Mr Tapan Mishra, United Nations Resident Coordinator ad interim for the UN Multi-Country Office for Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Nauru and Kiribati

Keynote Speech of the Girls in ICT Pacific 2024 (TBC)

  • Ms Deb Welsh, Assistant Secretary, eSafety Commissioner, Australia
  • Ms Gisa Lematua Tagaloa-a-taoa Fuatai Purcell, Regulator, Office of the Regulator, Samoa
  • Ms Yukiko Muller, President & CEO, Marshall Islands National Telecommunication Authority, Republic of Marshall Islands
  • Ms Renga Teannaki, Senior ICT Policy Analyst, Digital Transformation Office, Ministry of Information, Communications and Transport, Kiribati
  • Ms Veahepi Lilo, Senior Policy Analyst, Department Communication, Ministry of Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Communications (MEIDECC), Tonga
  • Ms Christine Francis, Principal International Affairs Officer, Papua New Guinea

(Each speaker to have 3 minutes maximum to deliver the remarks)

Group photo

14:30 – 15:00

Session 1: Girls in ICT for Inclusive Digital Transformation: Talking tech with the youth in the Pacific

This session provided a platform for the Pacific youth to share their perspectives and voices on the digital literacy and skills needed for inclusive digital transformation. It aimed to explore how young people can be better equipped for future job markets, and to actively participate in building an inclusive digital society in the Pacific.

Panel discussion led by an aspiring youth moderator:

  • Ms Millie Ogden, 3Link, Vanuatu

Speakers:

  • Ms Brittney Sizrah, Youth Leader, Jabwor, Jaluit Atoll, Republic of Marshall Islands
  • Ms Quentine Luwe, science student (Grade 12), Maprik Secondary School, East Sepik, Papua New Guinea
  • Ms Susitina Toutai, student (Grade 5), Hunga Government Primary School, Vava’u, Tonga
  • Ms Maifa Hairang, Student (Grade 4), South Malekula Secondary School, South Malekula, Vanuatu
  • Ms Sussanah Abouke, Student, Nauru Secondary School, Nauru
  • Ms Joyce Chen, Strategic Relations Senior Advisor, APNIC
  • Ms Aastha Mehta, 4th-year Bachelor of Software Engineering student of the University of South Pacific and Research Assistant for Samsung New Zealand on the Solve for Tomorrow project

(Each speaker to have 3 minutes maximum)

Group photo

15:00-15:15

Knowledge Sharing and Opportunities in the Pacific

This session featured ITU and key stakeholders presenting strategic opportunities available to the Pacific countries. The discussion focused on regional knowledge exchange and capacity building, with the aim of strengthening regional networks to address shared challenges and unlock sustainable digital development.

Speakers:

  • Ms Harshita Mehta, ITU Regional Office for Asia & the Pacific
  • Ms Alrina Ali, Multi-Country Coordinator for the Pacific Islands, United Nations Volunteers
  • Mr Anuj Gupta, AI Brain Lab of the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand
  • Mr Brian Moon, CEM, CEO, Pacific Telecommunications Council

(Every speaker has 10 minutes maximum to deliver presentation)

Group photo

15:45-16:00

Closing

  • Ms Rury Demsey, ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
  • Mr Ashish Narayan, ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
  • Ms Lena Ostlund, ITU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific