Women Tech Quest 2024, an initiative of 10Pearls University, is a platform for women to compete, learn, network and showcase their tech talents. The 8th edition of Women Tech Quest (WTQ) took place recently and was held in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. Over 1200 women in technology from across the three cities participated in the event.
Launched in 2017, WTQ is a competition to support women in evaluating and displaying their tech skills, gaining acknowledgement, and competing for substantial cash prizes and exposure. Moreover, it features inspirational speaker sessions and workshops where accomplished female professionals impart insights to assist aspiring individuals in their growth and success journey.
The competition, which has enjoyed enduring success in Pakistan, has recently expanded its reach to Costa Rica, Latin America, marking a significant milestone in its global expansion. This move aligns with our overarching dedication to nurturing innovation and diversity while offering women opportunities to flourish in technology.
Syeda Sana Hussain, Head of People & Programs – EMEA at 10Pearls, said, “This marks our 8th consecutive year of successfully hosting Women Tech Quest. As one of our flagship initiatives for women’s empowerment, WTQ has initiated and propelled the careers of over 6000 women, bolstered Pakistan’s talent pool, and provided women with a platform to enhance their visibility.”
Multiple Competition Streams
The competition consisted of three categories: Coding, Testing, and Design. Participants were presented with problems in the Coding segment and could employ any programming language to solve them. The Testing category involved assessing contestants on database and automation concepts through objectives. The Design Competition tasked participants with addressing a UI/UX challenge, evaluating their approach to user research, persona creation, and user flow design.
There were two categories, Professional and Student, for each stream in every city. Each city produced six winners, resulting in 18 winners. Winners were awarded significant cash prizes and shields, while all participants received swag kits and certificates of participation.
Invigorating Speaker sessions and Workshops
Apart from the Competition, WTQ also featured inspirational speaker sessions by esteemed women such as Honey Cantrell, EVP, Agency Operations, 10Pearls Studio; Jehan Ara, Founder & CEO, Katalyst Labs; Sam Ali Dada, Advisor to SAPM on Gender Inclusivity Ministry of Human Rights & Women Empowerment; Ayesha Zaman, CEO Skills Todo & Co-Founder, Pakistan Tech Forum; Tara Uzra Dawood, President, LADIESFUND; Sadia Bashir, Founder, PixelArt Games Academy; Monica Peter, Group Director, Learning and Culture, PTCL Group; Meher Nigar Khawaja, SVP & Program Delivery, Techlogix; Tania Aidrus, Co-Founder & CEO, DGlobal; and Maha Shahzad, Founder & CEO, Buscaro.
Endorsed by leading companies
WTQ 2024 was endorsed by top names in technology and other industries as the event of the year for tech women. This time, the event partners included reputed names such as NASTP, AshreiTech, P@SHA, WomeninTechPK, Bytewise Ltd, Testworthy, Vector, Ultimate Tech Crew, Cohort Max and Bonanza Satrangi. Marytoyland, Bogo and Bonanza Satrangi powered Event Giveaways.