Jamaican team Stronger Together copped fifth place in the Caribbean Girls Hack Technocreativity Hackathon earlier this year for their submission to support victims of gender-based violence (GBV).

The Stronger Together Team, comprised of Jonae Davidson, Samantha Bradley, Shanon Brown and Taneil Cousins conceptualised and produced a short docudrama based on gender-based violence (GBV) faced by both males and females. The girls stopped by the Flow offices and met with Kayon Mitchell, Director – Communications & Stakeholder Engagement and shared more about their project.

“It was a great experience!” shared Jonaé Davidson, who is currently in 6

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Form at St Hugh’s High School and served as team lead.  She stated that their solution was to “create and promote the support group called the “Stronger Together Association” which would start in our Jamaican school club system. After which, we would gain funds and expand the association to the wider society. This association will be built on the core values of Unity, Communication, Charity and Awareness (UCCA).” 

The expanded principles include: 

1. Unity – Instilling in the members that we should believe the stories of the victims facing GBV and be the strength in their hard times.

2. Communication – The association will be a safe space where victims will be encouraged to share their stories and help each other to heal from the trauma faced (which will be overseen by trusted mentors and psychologists).

3. Charity – All individuals are invited to add their support to make the lives of victims better by donating funds and personal items that will go solely towards victims who are financially struggling and more (which will be issued equally in an appropriate manner).

4. Awareness – Educating members and the world about the GBV faced in society today especially involving young people because they are the future.

Commenting on her personal experience in the competition, Jonae welcomed the challenge to lead her team and participate virtually in the hackathon.  She was excited about how the competition also aided her preparation to pursue a career in graphic designing. 

“I joined this hackathon event because I am a girl in ICT and I am very glad and excited that I got the opportunity to participate.  We did so well and I learnt a lot.  It has enhanced my graphic designing skills, especially as we were working virtually. I also love that we were able to “meet” other girls from all over the Caribbean.” she said.

It was a similar experience for Samanda Bradley, who attended Convent of Mercy Academy (Alpha), and is a past student of St Hugh’s High School.  She shared her plans to become a software engineer. 

“I am a girl in ICT and I am going to be a woman in ICT.  I want to study at one of the established universities.  I enjoyed being in the competition and I learnt a lot.  I also found that it helped to develop my existing skills.  Wow…when I heard that we had placed fifth, I was both happy and proud!”

Noting, however, that more girls are needed in the ICT space, Shanon Brown, who currently attends Kalamazoo College and is a past student of Morant Bay High stated, “Being a girl in ICT can be a challenge but I believe we can do it.  Being a part of this competition was really special.  I enjoyed it!  I learnt a lot which I think will help me as I pursue a career in ICT.  I am excited and elated to be in the top 5.  I would also like to thank Flow for our prizes.  This Dell Chromebook will really help me with my studies.”

Taneil Cousins, who recently graduated from St Hugh’s High School, will matriculate to University of Technology in the new academic year to pursue a degree in Computer Science. 

She said, “I could not believe it when I heard that we had place in the top 5.  Placing so high in the Caribbean in a competition that had 35 different teams…my team members and I were really proud.”

She also supported Shannon’s call for more girls in ICT to address real world problem as they did with their submission.

“I believe that women are as capable as men in the technology industry.  I believe that we can become stronger in that community,” she added.

Speaking on Flow’s support of these initiatives, Mitchell said, “Flow has been an advocate for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI).  We therefore believe that it is extremely important to encourage our girls and young women across the Caribbean to pursue their interests in and passion for ICT.  Already, we are seeing their passion and commitment to solving some of today’s biggest issues such as gender-based violence.  We were happy to have sponsored the hackathon which allowed us to engage our young women across the Caribbean region through a practical, hands-on event.  We are inspired and very proud of every young girl who participated in this event and congratulate the winning teams.  We are confident that they will take their place in our digital economy as our future digital innovators.”

Similar sentiments were echoed by Bridget Lewis, Co-Founder of Caribbean Girls Hack/SheLeadsIT, who shared that Flow has been a partner on this journey since inception, consistently demonstrating its commitment to gender equality in the ICT sector and the empowerment of women and girls to actively participate in the global digital economy.

“The hackathon is designed to empower young women as digital citizens and as tech creators who identify and build digital solutions to solve some of the world’s most urgent problems.  It is very heartening for me to see what these girls have been able to conceptualize as it goes to the heart of the work that we are doing, and Flow’s partnership has been instrumental in helping us to achieve this,” Lewis stated.

The Caribbean Girls Hackathon is an annual regional program led by SheLeadsIT, in collaboration with Technology partner Restore a Sense of I Can (RSC) Tech Clubs and was a part of this year’s International Girls in ICT Day celebration.  The regional competition engaged more than 700 girls in developing technical solutions to critical issues being experienced throughout the region. The event culminated in a virtual pitch with 150 girls representing 35 teams from 10 Caribbean countries from which The Girls Code from Suriname emerged winners.