“The Truth is Simple: Girls are Incredible Problem Solvers”

Belize Bank has launched a new round of its Girls4Tech programme, giving young Belizean girls hands-on experience in coding, digital security, and problem-solving. Supported by Mastercard, the initiative now reaches nearly 300 participants nationwide.

Women remain under-represented in tech fields across the Caribbean, and Girls4Tech was created to help close that gap.

Speaking at the launch, Chief Banking Officer Monica Daryanani Urbina challenged the stereotype that tech is not a space for girls. “The truth is simple: girls are incredible problem solvers. Girls are creative. Girls are innovative. Girls ask the questions that lead to the next big idea,” she said.

Urbina noted that many of the girls already think like innovators without realising it, pointing to their love of puzzles and daily use of apps and computers as the foundation of a tech mindset. 

She added that technology should not be seen as a side department but as central to progress. “Technology is not simply a department within an organisation. It’s the engine of innovation, the driver of progress, and one of our greatest tools of empowerment in our modern world,” she said.

Concluding her remarks, Urbina spoke directly to the self‑doubt that can hold women back from pursuing technical careers. “Every barrier is an opportunity to break it,” she said.