Association for Women in Technology (WTECH) Founded

From January onwards, supported by 70 individual and corporate founding members, the Women in Technology Association (WTECH) was launched on 19 March at Swissotel The Bosphorus with founding members and participants from business and academia. The Association, chaired by 360+ Medya Founding Agency President Zehra Öney as Founding Chair, and co-chaired by Selen Kocabaş, Mentoro Platform Partner and Independent Board Member, presented its establishment story, objectives and targets, along with striking sector figures at its opening. WTECH Founding Chair Zehra Öney said in her opening remarks: "The life journey that brought me here is actually an exemplary story of Women in Technology. I am a child of a generation that coincides with technology's dizzying pace of advancement and evolution. From the time I entered business life, I experienced continuous change and transformation, but throughout this journey I always felt alone as a woman. Our conditioning that 'technology is men's work' and the numerical superiority of men in this field are the main reasons for this. It is our main objective to eliminate this lack of diversity and loss of motivation among women, and to fully harness the power of technology and humanity.

I believe in the power of working with women in focus. Turkey's greatest strength is hardworking women with high emotional intelligence. The more we integrate and intensify this strength with technology, the further Turkey will advance. I believe this strongly.

I would like to particularly emphasize that in our talent management initiatives, we want to support men with a 20 percent quota just as we do women." Association Co-Chair Selen Kocabaş, speaking about her participation in the association, continued: "Development and growth in the global economy is possible with STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics + arts). Technology and digitalization are transforming the economy. Supporting women studying and working in STEM fields and their participation in decision-making mechanisms in business life is the greatest opportunity for our country and the global world. For this reason, as WTECH, we want to carry out our work by focusing on STEM and women. Research shows that for 2023, of Turkey's approximately 34 million total employment, approximately 3.5 million will be STEM employment. In meeting this need, based on undergraduate and graduate graduates, an approximate 31 percent gap is projected. The 31 percent figure we mention is a very significant rate. We cannot close this gap with the current inequality of opportunity. Therefore, women are the opportunity; we as civil society organizations, business, public and academia must work together as a whole, support each other's value creation, make it an important matter, and focus on women's empowerment in this regard. It is imperative that our STEM graduate women are included in the picture. STEM is the foundation of innovation and creativity. Development and growth will come through STEM."