site.btaUPDATED Alice in Digital Wonderland: Andreana Atanasova of Technology Industry Alliance on Bulgarian Women's Digital Skills

Technology is not a "reserved seat" for men in Bulgaria, but this country is second to last in the European Union in terms of women's digital skills, said Andreana Atanasova, Chairwoman of the Management Board of the Alliance of the Technology Industry (ATI) and one of the ambassadors of the Women in Tech programme for acquiring basic digital skills. In an interview for BTA's Veselina Yordanova, Atanasova specified that although Bulgarian women use the Internet as much as men and are even better skilled in the use of technology, they are ranked at the bottom in the European Commission's 2024 index assessing women's skills with tech and their career development in the IT field.

The index, published earlier this week, assesses how women in the 27 Member States use the Internet, their skills in using it, theirs specialized skills and employment. Bulgarian women are ranked second to last, and Romanian women are at the bottom of the ranking.

Organizing training programmes is of exceptional important for overcoming this lagging behind, Atanasova commented.

She is among the official guests at the opening of the fourth course of the Women in Tech programme, scheduled to be held at the University of Telecommunications and Post (UTP) in Sofia on Friday. At the end of the training day, about 50 ladies - trainees from the previous groups who have successfully passed their exam - will receive certificates of completion.

So far, nearly 200 women have successfully completed the basic digital skills programme. The programme, which has a social focus and is free of charge for the participants, is conducted in partnership between the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, Huawei Technologies Bulgaria and UTP. Vice President Iliana Iotova supported the ladies in the first course, which was held in March 2024.  The trainees also had the opportunity to meet and talk with other ambassadors of the initiative: the Chief Advisor of the Board of Directors of Vivacom, Janet Zaharieva, and the caretaker Minister of Labour and Social Policy, Ivaylo Ivanov.

What it is like being an ambassador

"On the one hand, as the Chair of the Alliance of the Technology Industry, I feel professionally committed to support the efforts of ATI members in conducting training programmes that will not only promote the role of the technology industry in the modern world, but also contribute to the acquisition of knowledge and skills necessary for the digital transformation of Bulgarian society. On the other hand, in my personal capacity, as a woman with a Master's degree in engineering, I believe that technology is not much different from any other challenge that every Bulgarian woman faces in her daily life and deals with successfully," Atanasova told BTA.

Rapid technological development dramatically changing the labour market

The entry of technology has been seen in all sectors of the labour market globally. Acquiring digital skills is key to both increasing everyone's competitiveness in the labour market and overcoming the "digital divide" in society, she said further.

Atanasova cited a World Economic Forum report that by 2025, half of all employees will need retraining. The survey of employers' workforce needs in the country, conducted by the National Employment Agency in 2023, shows that digital competence is the fourth most important skill sought by employers - 8.2% out of eight preferred competences, the expert pointed out. At the same time, only 8% of the country's employees have above-average digital skills and only 30% have basic digital skills. 

Atanasova said training in the programme will enable participants to acquire basic digital knowledge and skills that they can develop and build on over time, and this can contribute to their better career prospects or improve their lifestyle.

To what extent is technology a "reserved seat" for men in Bulgaria
 
Atanasova said that unlike Bulgaria's lagging behind in the rankings in terms of basic skills and internet use, the ICT sector in Bulgaria is not reserved for men.

According to the European Commission's index, Bulgaria ranks fifth among Member States in terms of female IT graduates. Once again, the European Commission's State of the Digital Decade Report shows that Bulgaria retains its leading first position in the EU in terms of the share of female ICT professionals, 29.1%. This is reported to be due to the country's education system, which traditionally supports the training of both boys and girls in the so-called STEM approach.

Challenges facing the sector today

One of the main challenges facing the sector is the provision of a high-speed, secure and sustainable digital infrastructure across the country, according to the expert.

Bulgaria's National Recovery and Sustainability Plan includes the Digital Connectivity project, which is intended to finance the deployment of digital infrastructure in sparsely populated and remote areas in Bulgaria. "Despite the short timeframe left for the implementation of this project, we expect the funds to be effectively utilized, which will lead to increased coverage throughout the country," she noted.

The expert also considers a challenge facing the sector the slow and complicated administrative procedures related to construction permits. She expressed the hope that the problem will soon be overcome through the adoption of the changes in the regulatory framework already proposed by the Council of Ministers to the National Assembly.