Bolt, the leading on-demand transport platform in Africa, has rolled out its second phase of the #Drive4WITech internship program that seeks to empower women in technology across Africa.
The #Drive4WITech is a program by Bolt that aims to train, mentor and empower young women seeking to jumpstart their careers in the tech space regardless of their fields of study.
The program is designed to offer women at the start of their careers access to Top Bolt executives with years of experience across Europe and Africa for mentorship and guidance. Upon completion of the programme, successful candidates also get the chance to be employed by Bolt and work across its Engineering, Operations, PR and Marketing departments.
“For the second year running, we’re excited to be launching a month-long internship programme to help women in Kenya gain valuable work experience and fast-track their careers. The tech industry has historically been a male-dominated space and we strongly believe that more women in tech means more inclusion, diverse and progressive society. This is why, in honor of this year’s International Women’s Day, we are aiming to help more women across Africa fast-track their career in the tech world.” Bolt Regional Manager Micah Kenneth said.
Last year’s programme was successful in sparking interest in tech careers. It created the chance to not only start a career in tech, but also make a difference in the ride-hailing space.
Rahma Halane, one of the first beneficiaries of the program, is now part of the Bolt team. She says the #Drive4WITech internship program really shifted her paradigm on how she perceived the tech industry.
“I am grateful I ventured into the tech industry and as a young woman I feel empowered to empower other women to pursue their dreams and venture into any industry they are passionate about,” Rahma added.
The program has a wide range of career choices, there’s an opportunity to join different teams in Engineering, Operations and Marketing.
“We’re extremely proud of our last year’s interns — Rahma Halane was promoted to an Operations Coordinator after her internship, a role in which she excelled in, and was further promoted to an Operations Specialist at Bolt in March 2022. Gladys Onyango went on to run her own business and Mercy Cheruyiot chose to major in data science and machine learning, all having gained some valuable experience at Bolt.” Added Micah.
This year, Bolt is giving 12 women a chance to participate in the internship programme to gain skills in operations, engineering, PR and marketing. The internship will run from May until June. It’s a paid internship, and applicants do not need previous experience to apply.
To be part of the program, one needs to to visit Bolt’s website and answer these questions. One can also nominate a friend to be part of the program. The Company will review all applications and contact the successful candidates in April. The application window is open until March 30th, 2022.
Bolt hopes to continue providing more opportunities like the #Drive4WITech, the women-only category to women across its business portfolio through such initiatives and more that will work towards achieving gender equality for a sustainable tomorrow.