#Intro.
-Deba
Our community is sustained by many beautiful personalities. People who work as a collective to ensure that we build an ecosystem of love, care and oneness. Our women are the backbone of this community, they come up with ideas, supervise our decision making and implement these ideas in ways that nobody else can.
RADAR this month is FULLY dedicated to appreciating these great minds and expressing our heartfelt gratitude to the women who make our world go round.
Our sisters, our friends, our partners, our teachers, course mates and everything that our beautiful women are in our different lives.
The people who make us feel special, who complete us and who we cannot work as a tight knit collective without. So relax and dive into this edition with an open mind and with excitement as we appreciate these group of superheroes in every word.
#FINDING YOUR VOICE IN A MALE-DOMINATED FIELD
-Tayo
Hi!
My name is Tayo.
I’m one of the content writers for RADAR. I have my own newsletter as well. I study Comp Sci. It’s been a love-hate relationship, but my grades are good. I’m really interested in Data Analytics and ML and the inner-workings of AI. I don’t know much about it right now, but I know more than I did a month ago. I fell back in love with Frontend during my internship. I love Jesus more. So much more. I love puppies too, and my friends, and Dunsin Oyekan, and my beautiful family. My friends know I love ice cream. I like to eat it with them. I aspire to be many things. I see tech playing a role in most of them. I believe Nigeria could be a world power if our people weren’t so ignorant (including myself). I feel compelled to learn our history and protect it. I like slow, lazy mornings, with a funny movie and pepper soup to end a rainy day. I’m scared of love, but I know I’ll find it. I love being a tech girlie.
What’s your name?
And who are YOU?
Say it out loud if you can.
I’ll wait (words are literally frozen in time so…)
I have a question.
Why do we have stereotypes?
They are arguably the most ignorant thing to exist.
It’s a little foolish to look at a few statistics or shared attributes and reduce a category of people or things to a list that is far from encompassing.
We’ve been taught to reduce ourselves to these lists as well. We learnt to stay in the box. But is life not meant to be lived? I do not intend to reduce the width of my horizon because someone somewhere who may be alive or dead thought it “unladylike”.
I’ve been reading Dream Count by Chimamanda for almost 7 months now (I’ve been busy, okay?) A character I really like is Omelogor. I want to finish the book first before I say she’s my favourite. She was not a woman that you could put in a box. She was always thinking, always questioning. At some point, she had me wondering if she was just doing things for the plot. She may have held a little superiority with her beliefs, but she was good. Really good. She soared in banking, but her colleagues decided to reduce her success to bedding her superior. It irked me, but not enough. Not as much as it should have. It was the normalcy of the situation that made it fly over my head. It made me wonder why such a thing should be considered normal.
Now, I love men, and far be it from me to incite a gender war, but what is it that makes us inherently believe they are superior? I could talk about how this circumstance may never really change, but I’m more concerned about what it makes today’s women think is possible for them to achieve.
I will never call misandry feminism. I know many ladies have weaponized the term to take a jab at men. I do not think you need to hate a man to be a feminist. I think a man could be a feminist, and many are. Feminism is the advocacy of women's rights based on the equality of the sexes. Her rights to choice, to chance, and to achieve.
I asked you who you were because I wanted you to know what you have. Everyone has something. We were not made without ability and capacity. I love to learn and to understand. I love to see potential explored. It is what I have and why I am able to write this to you. I hate to think of the wasted potential of things and of people because of prejudice, stereotypes, and complexes.
The truth is, there is no good thing that will not face opposition and adversity. If you do something bad and someone stops you, then either they love you or God loves you. But the worst thing you can do to yourself is shut the door with your own hands so no one gets the chance to.
There is a student whom I regard as the best Tech student to graduate from Babcock. In skill and in accolades. The student is a woman. You and I have seen the template play out several times and succeed. I could tell you the names of the many extraordinary women who are leaders and changemakers in their respective industries, but I’m too lazy for that…
But what I mean to say is why should you stop yourself before anyone even tries? I’m supposed to tell you how to find your voice. But they are just voices. Why should you care if it is male or female? I think you should only look out for God’s voice. The rest is human opinion. Nothing more. Men are not as scary as you think. And men are not the competition! No one was born with skill. They only had curiosity and ability. Work at your own thing. Learn and refine as you go. All you need is to BELIEVE that what God put in you is enough to achieve what you want to. And whatever you lack can be learnt!
You have a right to achieve whatever you want and soar as high as you want, regardless of whose presence saturates your desired environment. If they don’t like it, they can take it up with their mothers.
I’m starting to feel like a motivational speaker, so I’ll end things here. I know you’re smart enough to get the message. And as a bona fide Sofia the First fan, I want to tell you
YOU ARE STRONGER THAN YOU KNOW <3
Five gbosa for you if you remember the episode and nil if you didn’t.
Keep shining, Queen.
Editors note= Look at Tayo, she is so beautiful and so inspiring. We love Tayo, thank you Tayo for being a part of us
#One Day, Two Narratives: Rethinking IWD 2026
-Ayo
When the theme for the recently concluded International Women’s Day started gaining traction and was becoming publicized - getting used in postcards, letters, advertisements being pushed out for both big and small companies/firms alike, my colleague said something about the theme being picked from the wrong source.
I paused.
I hadn’t even known each year came with a unique theme, talk less of being aware of the body it was being pumped out from. So as any other inquisitive mind, I began to dig and compare data across multiple sites.
I jest.
I got some of my current information from an article Tejiri sent.
Thanks team lead.
The overarching plot is this:
The themes had usually been sourced from UN Women, a registered UN body. What they put out for IWD ‘26 was Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls.
Their full write-up is here at the link, if you want:
https://www.unwomen.org/en/get-involved/international-womens-day
Some of the CTA’s and pain points were:
- Women’s rights mean nothing if we cannot defend them.
- Women and girls are living without full legal protection.
- When justice fails, women pay the price.
And the official video:
On the other side - and the somewhat lucky party this year - was internationalwomensday.com, a website operated by Aurora Ventures.
Give to Gain.
Their perspective was thus:
- Give To Gain is a worldwide call to contribute.
- Give To Gain emphasises the power of reciprocity and support.
And the question:
What will you Give to Gain gender equality?
So, at the end of it all…both are lovely themes. One, raising awareness the injustice meted out against the female population - and another, speaking on our ability as mankind to forge gender equality through abundant giving.
An average writer would end with the question: What theme do you align with?
But I’m a self-proclaimed genius, so I’ll end with this.
Why pick and choose when you can choose to live in awareness of both?
#Who Is a Woman?
Harrison Tife
At first glance, this question seems to have an obvious answer. A woman is an adult human female born with XX chromosomes, a vagina, ovaries, a uterus, and, in most cases, the ability to bear children.
That is the biological definition of a woman, but a woman is much more than her reproductive organs.
Throughout history, the definition of a woman has never been universal. Different cultures, societies, and religions have each defined women according to their own beliefs and values.
In the past, some have called a woman "an imperfect man" or "an incidental being." Aristotle himself declared that “the female nature was afflicted with a natural defectiveness," implying that humanity is inherently male and that man defines woman not in relation to herself, but in relation to him.
In some traditions across ancient Europe and Asia, women were expected to remain at home, raise children, and tend to domestic life while men controlled politics and public affairs. Yet other cultures told an entirely different story. In parts of Africa, women were warriors, there are accounts of all-female military regiments, trained soldiers who demonstrated extraordinary courage and protected their kingdoms.
In ancient Egypt, women were pharaohs, creating and enforcing laws while handling the political, economic, and military affairs of entire kingdoms. Religion has also played a pivotal role in shaping how women are perceived. In many faiths, women are seen as central figures in family life, motherhood, and moral guidance.
In Christianity and Islam, women are encouraged to be compassionate caregivers and strong pillars within the family.
In Hinduism and Buddhism, women are associated with powerful spiritual symbolism, suggesting that spiritual potential is not limited by gender. Across many African traditional religions, women have long been regarded as life givers, community builders, and custodians of culture and tradition, holding spiritual roles as priestesses, healers, and community advisors. No discussion of womanhood is complete without examining society and how it has viewed her.
Society evolves, and with it, the place of women within it. Women were once considered important only in domestic settings and were afforded very limited political rights. In ancient Greece and Rome, they were excluded from public decision-making entirely while, at that very same time, women in Egypt could vote and rule. By the Middle Ages, society had become heavily patriarchal; men controlled legal, political, and even marital rights, leaving women subject to the authority of their fathers and husbands.
In modern times, society has moved toward advocating for women, she has gained rights, access to education, and opportunities in professional careers. Yet despite the progress made, women around the world are still fighting for full equality. In some countries, women continue to face restrictions on education, work, and basic freedoms. Cultural traditions, societal norms, and outdated laws often limit women's rights and reinforce gender stereotypes. Even in developed nations, societal expectations continue to shape how women are perceived, based on physical appearance, domestic responsibilities, and conformity to traditional roles.
Different societies, cultures, and religions, from different geographical areas and across different timelines have all weighed in on who a woman should be, and it ultimately comes down to perspective. Every person, including women themselves, holds different views on who they should be and what role they should play. No tradition, culture, religion, or society is the same, and so none of them arrive at the same definition. If they cannot agree on who a woman is, then perhaps the definition of a woman should be left to her. All of this underscores the fact that society has never fully settled on how it defines or values women.
Women continue to challenge limiting expectations and claim the right to define their own lives, careers, and identities which brings us back to the definition of a woman.
That definition is independence. A woman should not be subjected to society's, culture's, or religion's version of who she ought to be. She should define herself. From ancient times to modern civilization, the question of who a woman is and what she should be has been fiercely debated and never conclusively answered and crucially, those debates have rarely included women themselves. A woman should decide who she wants to be, what she wants to do, and what roles she chooses to play in every aspect of life. Some women believe in total independence, they want to lead their own businesses and chart their own paths. Other women choose to stay at home and devote themselves personally to raising their children and managing their households. Neither choice makes one woman better than another. A woman should not be confined by how others define her, with the freedom of choice, she should define herself; ultimately a woman is who she wants to be.
#Women in Tech
-Freda
For years, the conversation around women in tech was about gaining entry.
Not even about making impact, or causing waves in the scene, they couldn’t gain access to the room.
Today, for the average gen z female techie or professional, the conversation has shifted from access to agency.
And believe it or not, it has given rise to innovations that would never have seen the light of day otherwise.
Waving off a female making strides in the tech space is equal to ignorance in today’s world.
As digital natives who haven't just learned tech but have lived it, gen z women are entering the workforce with a unique blend of technical intuition and a demand for radical transparency.
They’ve moved from hustle to harmony, can boast of ethics as women of technical proficiency and have a say in the branding of the average techie in this era.
They’re not just participating in tech anymore, they’re quietly reshaping what it means to belong in it.
Where older systems rewarded burnout and silence, they are choosing balance, clarity, and a voice that refuses to shrink.
This shift is not loud in the traditional sense, but it is powerful, showing up in the products they build, the communities they create, and the standards they refuse to lower.
In many ways, they are redefining success itself, proving that impact doesn’t have to come at the cost of identity.
And as this generation continues to rise, it’s becoming clear that the future of tech isn’t just more inclusive, it is being actively rewritten by the women who were once kept out of the room.
#Becoming that Techie
-Blossom
A realistic guide – no gatekeeping!
Hey there tech girlie (yes the fact that you’re even here means you have already begun your journey-congratulations🎉).
Before we delve into this though you need to know that nobody becomes a techie in a weekend, every woman in tech you admire started exactly where you are – confused, curious and quite frankly, frustrated too. I was all these things too only a few months ago until I started figuring a few of these things we’ll talk about now, and the path does not seem as impossible as I thought it was, so you can too.
The Honest Starting Point
I won’t sugarcoat anything here, so yes entering the tech world as a woman tends to feel like walking into a room where the furniture was arranged for someone else. The jargon is dense, the learning process seems like it’d take a lifetime and of course the gender gap is real. Discouraging as they might seem these things are a gradual well-planned process. So, stop thinking your brain is made of plastic when you haven’t had it all figured out yet okay?
Myths we’re Retiring this March
- MYTH: You have to be a math genius to do tech.
- TRUTH: Most of tech is really just problem-solving and understanding patterns. The math you actually need you learn as the need arises (P.S. - there is no shame in googling a math formula at 2am; Everyone does😉).
- MYTH: It’s too late to start, everyone else has been coding since they were 5.
- TRUTH: While it may be true that some people were born alongside a laptop with written codes, tech isn’t all about coding but you will progressively learn that too. You might also want to know that most of the most respected voices in tech made career pivots in their 20s, 30s and even beyond, so learning is a continuous process.
- MYTH: I need to know everything before I can call myself a techie.
- TRUTH: Imposter syndrome as this is called does not mean you are incapable or incompetent, it just means you care deeply about doing things well. But don’t let it hinder you; you don’t wait until you’re ready, you become ready by doing.
Four Things that Actually Matter
Not the flashiest piece of advice. The most honest.
- START SMALL, STAY CONSISTENT
One concept- cybersecurity, AI, app development, anything you feel intrigued by. One tutorial. One project, no matter how tiny.
Momentum is built in minutes, not marathons.
- FIND YOUR PEOPLE
Communities like GDG exist because tech is not a solo sport. The women who have trod this same path want to pull you forward – let them.
- BUILD THINGS. BREAK THINGS.
Reading about code is never the same as actually writing it. Reading and admiring a design is never the same as actually creating your own. Your representations are the point.
- DOCUMENT YOUR JOURNEY
This one’s for my introverted girlies. I mean letting the outside world see your wins and struggles sounds like a lot, but trust me it opens up paths to connections and recognition, inspiration to others too. So, post about your learning process and write that LinkedIn note.
A Roadmap that Respects your Reality
We all have classes, that first-class we’re after, family obligations, data costs, a social life(hopefully), and maybe a part-time job. This is a framework that actually fits into real life – not a tech bro’s fantasy schedule that ends up like some new year’s resolutions.
- Pick one path first. Cybersecurity. Web dev. Data Science. AI. Cloud. UI/UX. Take it from me that you can’t be a jack-of-all trade at once in tech because you end up with half-baked knowledge in everything. So, just do what genuinely excites you, not what sounds super impressive.
- Use free, structured resources. Google’s free learning pathways, freeCodeCamp, Kaggle, TryHackMe, W3Schools; world-class education exists outside the classroom at zero naira.
- Give yourself a realistic timeline. Six months of well-spaced consistent training beats six weeks of frantic cramming followed by burnout. Pace is not weakness, it’s wisdom.
- Build something by month three. Not perfect or polished. Just real, raw effort and build up of acquired skills. It could be a webpage, a small script, a basic analysis. Real beats theoretical, every single time.
- Show up for your community. Attend GDG events. Join BUCC practically. Go to seminars even when you’re tired and unmotivated. The network you build now is your safety net and springboard for years.
Why it matters that you’re here
This isn’t just about personal career success. More women actually need to enter tech because the stats show that there are only 26% of computing jobs worldwide that are held by women. And here’s the thing, your perspective or idea isn’t a bonus – it’s a structural design the industry desperately needs.
Every woman who pushes through the discomfort and awkwardness and actually builds her skills makes the room slightly less cold for the next girl who walks in. You can agree that it is not a small thing.
One Last Thing
You will have days where it simply doesn’t click. Where the error makes no sense. Where someone is unnecessarily condescending and you find yourself comparing your chapter one to someone else’s chapter twenty and end up feeling inadequate.
Those days are not signs to quit. They’re part of your journey and it will indeed be bittersweet. The techie you’re becoming isn’t built in a few minutes of inspiration one random afternoon. She’s built in the quiet hours of self-realization, the confusing debugging sessions and the ‘oh wait, I actually got it” moments that only you understand.
Keep going.
Keep going because future you is saying “You belong in every room. Not because someone gave you permission. Because you showed up and refused to let imposter syndrome write your story.”
-love Blossom🌸
#Women
-Andrea
I pray this not be too much, but for the sake of context, picture this.
I lay practically lopsided in my bed, gazing at the present state my room is in, a reflection of my mind and how burnt out I have been from life, routines, and my internship over the last couple of weeks, and it leaves me with a thought heavily plaguing my mind.
Mothers carry even more weight, and that too with a smile. They do not just shelter a child inside their bodies for months; they have to be productive while at it. While their bodies go through so much change, they also have to deal with the extra drama that comes with this new journey. It doesn’t end there — they have to be present in our lives even after that. They have to be the best at their careers, the best wife, mother, sister, daughter, aunty, neighbor, cousin, and more… all in the same breath.
A woman is born with the strength to carry many things like they weigh nothing. A smile on her face still.
A young girl has to fight her convictions on what she is meant to be against what society and patriarchy have conformed her to believe she can be, or is allowed to be, whilst still bleeding and in pain every single month.
Women have always had to do the extra because it is never enough.
If you’re reading this corner of my article, do know I wrote this crippled by creative block, but do something for me — make that woman or girl around you feel special today. Let her know she is enough. Allow her to see that you see her and you support her. Give her a hug, if you may.
We often wonder why women have more celebratory days through the year. You need not bother about the dates on the calendar highlighting the events; make the women around you feel special around you every day.
#Outro
-Deba
I want us to remember that regardless of how hard things might be and how difficult it may seem, there is nothing we cannot do. The women on this team have shown me that. I have seen Tejiri juggle work in the ways of a pro, handling ten things at once and maintaining her cool. I have seen Andrea work her ass off, drained and tired while still showing up EVERYTIME that we need her. Let’s talk about Tayo, BWC executive, BUSA executive and RADAR faithful. All these wonderful women alongside the many other great girls on our team prove to me everyday that impossible is nothing. They inspire me without even knowing it and they are just a mirror of women all around the world. For them we are grateful!! Remember to appreciate the women in your life everyday and in every way you can
Oh and yeah, welcome to Orbit!!!!!
With love,
Commit & Push,
The GDG Creative Writing Team. ❤
