Tunisia, Tunis -- (ReleaseWire) -- 06/01/2007 -- The Taskforce will have a contributing presence at the inaugural International Colloquium on "Empowering Women in Engineering and Technology" on June 6th. This event will bring together the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO), International Taskforce on Women & ICTs, UNESCO and many other industry stakeholders to discuss ongoing initiatives on gender, engineering and ICT; raise awareness on gender-related barriers to engineering and ICT access; include women as leaders and decision-makers; and support local solutions and content. The goal of this extraordinary new colloquium is to increase the worldwide participation and leadership of women engineers within WFEO and both the engineering and technology professions. The colloquium will host over 50 well-known speakers and 500 participants representing over 90 different countries.

“The Taskforce was created to re-invigorate current efforts and support the initiation of new efforts that will recognize and remedy women’s severe under-representation in the development of ICTs and ICT policy, from basic access through leadership, states Claudia Morrell, ITF Chair, “this colloquium is right in line with our goals to allow women increased participation in political, social, and economic arenas and supports empowerment in ICT for themselves, their families, their communities, and their nations.”

The United Nations Global Alliance for Information and Communication Technologies and Development (UNGAID), has recognized the ITF as a community of expertise and is working collaboratively to establish a stakeholder group for gender and ICTs to support the work of the UNGAID.

The following organizations make up the ITF steering committee:

- UNESCO Women, Science and Technology in Latin America, Argentina
- Education Development Center, USA
- European Women in Net (WINNET Europe), Sweden
- APEC Women’s e-Biz Center, Asian Pacific Women’s Information Network Center (APWINC), Korea
- European Association for Women in Science, Engineering & Technology (WiTEC), UK
- Texas Instruments, USA
- Association for Progressive Communications Women’s Networking Support Programme (APC WNSP), Philippines
- Hewlett-Packard Company, USA
- Women in Global Science and Technology, Canada
- The Center for Women and IT at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, USA

Tunisian Press Contact: Zobieda Elfaleh - Phone: 216 98 334962 - (E)prorp@intercom.tn
The Taskforce Contact: Claudia Morrell - Phone: 410.455.2822 or 011-423-663-080-124

About International Taskforce on Women & ICT
The International Taskforce on Women and ICTs (the Taskforce), established in 2006, created a Declaration of Agreement (www.umbc.edu/cwit/Declaration.html) with Guiding Principles that serve as the foundation for the organization. The Taskforce promotes communication and information exchange; the increased sharing of research, knowledge, and resources; the development of collaborative activities; and the promotion of policies and programming that support women’s participation and leadership in all areas of ICT for development. The goal is to ensure that the participation of women in engineering, education, and employment in ICT globally is measurably and significantly increased within five years.