 Hello, I'm Janet Longmore and I'm the founder and president of Digital Opportunity Trust. One of the biggest impacts that inspires me in the DOT network is the powerful and passionate role models that so many young women facilitators in our network have become role models for their peers and for other women in their communities as they inspire them to learn to use technology to improve their lives. These young women have inspired thousands of others across hundreds of communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and in our Indigenous communities in Canada. I think of Aisha who joined DOT Kenya as a facilitator in 2010. She was responsible for mentoring youth in a region with one of the highest poverty levels in the country. Aisha led the way with something called the DOT Women's Network. Here's how she describes that. DOT Women Network is an online community whereby the DOT female come together to share ideas on business, to share ideas on some of the challenges that they're facing. It's like a think tank. If you need something about this, maybe it's a business, about starting a business or about a problem that women are facing and you don't know how you're going to tackle it, we have resources within our online platform. So we've realized that so many women in DOT are going there to get information which is very vital. Since 2010, Aisha has developed her mentorship skills through the Sherry Blair Foundation for Women and serves as a role model for young women in both Kenya and across East Africa, online and off. Aisha is now working at Ibiz Africa, a business incubator that helps youth develop entrepreneurship and ICT skills. She continues to support the DOT community through social media. It's inspiring to see Aisha grow from being a facilitator with DOT to being a leader for other youth across Kenya. ICT is also a powerful tool for making the world seem smaller. One brilliant idea can become a movement and the knowledge of a few can become the knowledge of many. A network effect is created. Take Annette, for example. Annette is the housewife and mother of four who use the ICT skills learned through DOT Uganda to create a branding and marketing plan for her mushroom business. She then took those skills and shared them on a Facebook group called Friends for Life Uganda, an online network of former DOT participants. Annette still goes on this group as a way to support her fellow Ugandan businesses and offer advice and guidance to her peers. Leadership opportunities are posted there and Annette and others are using the group as a way to improve and enhance their everyday business goals. Today, more than 100 people are active in that Facebook group, a powerful example of youth harnessing ICT skills to create a community support network for themselves. So let's celebrate the world and women coming together on this Girls and ICT Day. I celebrate the courage, conviction and passion of the many young women role models in the DOT network. I hope that you find a way that technology can inspire and connect you today and every other day of the year.