From Makeni to Kenema: Arming 104 Women with Digital Skills in Sierra Leone

From Makeni to Kenema: Arming 104 Women with Digital Skills in Sierra Leone

In a quiet but powerful shift across two major cities, 104 women and girls are now stepping into the digital age with new confidence, new skills, and new possibilities after completing an intensive Digitruck training programme focused on bridging the country’s digital divide.

The training, held in Makeni and Kenema, has gone beyond the distribution of certificates. For many of the participants, it represents a personal turning point that moves them from digital exclusion to digital participation.

In classrooms filled with first-time learners and returning students alike, the focus was clear: digital literacy, online safety, and practical use of digital tools for everyday life and work. For some participants, it was the first time they had confidently used a computer beyond basic phone functions. For others, it was their first structured introduction to the internet as a tool for learning and earning.

Now, they leave not just with certificates but with skills that could reshape their futures.

“We are not just teaching them how to use technology,” one facilitator said. “We are helping them believe they belong in the digital space.”

The initiative arrives at a critical time for Sierra Leone, where digital access and literacy remain uneven, particularly among women and girls in both urban and rural communities. 

Despite growing national investment in telecommunications infrastructure, many young people still lack the skills needed to fully participate in the digital economy. This is where the impact of the Digitruck programme becomes more than training it becomes intervention.

For participants, the benefits are immediate and practical.

Some now understand how to safely navigate social media and avoid online risks. Others have learned how to use digital tools for schoolwork, business, and communication. A few are already exploring ways to turn their new knowledge into income-generating opportunities. But beyond skills, there is something harder to measure: confidence.

Confidence to speak, to explore, to create, and to compete in spaces that were previously out of reach. “Before this, I was afraid of technology,” one trainee shared. “Now I feel like I can learn anything.” That transformation is at the heart of the programme’s mission.

Organisers say the initiative is built on three core pillars: access, skills, and opportunity designed to ensure that women and girls are not left behind in Sierra Leone’s growing digital economy.

The broader strategic implication is clear: the acquisition of digital competencies by women generates significant socio-economic externalities, extending benefits to families and catalyzing community development and expanded opportunities.

In key urban centers such as Makeni and Kenema, where high youth unemployment and limited access to digital resources present considerable obstacles, programs of this nature are indispensable for long-term development.

The immediate impact is evident not in infrastructural improvements or policy documents, but in a demonstrable shift in participant perspective.

Specifically, participants now articulate a perception of the internet as an enabling tool, shifting away from viewing it as a barrier, which is reflected in their redefined aspirations for employment, education, and entrepreneurial engagement within the global digital landscape.

The successful training of these 104 women and girls constitutes a foundational step toward establishing digital inclusion as a sustained pathway for future development within their respective communities.