Nineteen women representing 12 organisations from the cities of Mumbai, New Delhi, Bhopal and Goa; and from the states of South-Hyderabad, Kerala, Gujarat and Maharashtra participated in the Women’s Electronic Network Training Workshop in India (WENT-IN) which was held from November 15-22, 2003 at the Yuva Centre in Khargar district, Mumbai. The workshop trained participants in planning effective web-based information services, and in using online communication tools to advance their networking and advocacy work.
The graduates of WENT-IN are expected to promote the use of information and communication technology to enhance women’s role and capacity in social and policy advocacy. WENT-IN is designed to strengthen women’s organisations and networks in India.
The WENT workshop in India follows at the heels of the Fifth Asia-Pacific Women’s Electronic Network Training Workshop (WENT) which was held last October 12-20, 2003 at the Sookmyung Women’s University in Seoul, Korea. The regional WENT is an ICT training workshop for women held annually since 1999.
The WENT in India is also the third national training workshop organised to promote the localisation of the regional WENT workshop. Successful national WENT workshops were held last year in the Philippines and Malaysia. To date, the combined national and regional WENT workshops have trained 221 women from close to 200 women’s organisations from 24 countries in Asia and the Pacific in various ICTs such as web and database management, online content development, local area networking, and electronic commerce.
WENT in India was co-organised by Akshara, a Mumbai-based women’s resource centre; and by the Association for Progressive Communications-Women’s Networking Support Women (APC WNSP). APC WNSP, along with the Korea-based Asian Pacific Women’s Information Network Centre (APWINC) are the co-coordinators of the Asia Pacific Women’s Electronic Network Training Workshop (WENT).
Members of the APCWNSP in Asia and the Pacific have steered the training team of WENT since 1999. WENT regional trainers and APCWNSP members, Pi Villanueva Reyes and Justina Curtis led the workshop in India together with Aksahara members, Anita Mehta and Nandita Ghandi. Reyes and Curtis also belong to WomensHub (Philippines) and Community Communications Online (C2O), respectively. WomensHub and C2O are both members of the Association for Progressive Communications.
