We Want To Raise Girls Who Will Become Tech Superstars Even As Great Mothers And Wives – Modupe Ativie

February 16, 2025

The Not A Regular Girl Conference 2024, powered by the Global Blockchain Women Alliance (GBWA) and hosted by their African lead, Modupe Ativie, was held in Port Harcourt on Saturday, May 25, 2025, at the Amphitheatre, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt.

The event designed to raise the next generation of tech queens in Africa began at 9 a.m. with the first session by the convener , Modupe Ativie. She shared her journey into tech, from studying microbiology in Nigeria to moving to the UK to round up her university degree, getting her first job in the UK that exposed her to tech, returning to Nigeria and realizing there are more opportunities in tech for women, but not enough women are aware, to starting her first company and now running multiple businesses including a training and consulting firm, a travel agency, and a blockchain brand, Credence. Credence specializes in blockchain and distributed ledger technologies and helps businesses transition seamlessly to the digital economy by moving from centralized to decentralized systems.

During her session, Modupe Ativie used case studies from three inspiring women in the tech world who are breaking barriers and making an impact, one of whom is Radhika Iyengar from India. Despite her accent, nationality, and skin color, Radhika has been able to help tech startups raised over $200 million while solving problems using blockchain technology. Modupe also talked about a Nigerian female tech superstar, Deborah Ojengbede . Deborah Ojengbede is founder of AFEN Blockchain, a multimillion dollar company .

Her session was insightful and inspiring, ending with a Q&A where she answered every question, giving future techpreneurs clarity on their path to follow.

The next session featured Beauty Akorvueze-Nwakanma and Karla Obakpolor. Beauty shared how she made her first million while still in school, started her first business, and got into real estate, which she never saw coming, but today runs one of the fastest-growing real estate companies in Port Harcourt with her husband. She also shared how she balances her life as a wife, mother, and entrepreneur, reminding the young girls that they can do more than just finish school and be a wife and mother.

Karla spoke about her journey into tech, from writing music lyrics as an upcoming musician to looking for ways to monetize her songwriting skills and discovering how technology can aid music marketing. Today, she is fully into tech. Their session also ended with a Q&A and was eye-opening for the girls.

The event also featured a young girl Praise, a self-taught developer, who decided to develop an app to connect car repairers with car owners needing to fix car issues after seeing her father struggle to get a mechanic when their car broke down. The conversation from the session made the girls realize they can fix problems and provide solutions to global issues using tech.

The event ended with a presentation by Thony Ibegbulem and Ivie Osuamkpe from REDMUR. It was shocking to learn that with 3D and virtual reality, one can create virtual humans who own active social media pages on Instagram and other platforms. These virtual humans partner with fashion brands as influencers to deliver marketing campaigns and promote fashion projects just like regular influencers.

We also learned about animation movies and other opportunities in 3D animation and virtual reality.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the girls to see tech for what it is.

Speaking to some of the girls after the event, Benita, 15, said she’s not only learned about tech and the opportunities in tech but also improved her self-confidence, having heard from other girls and women doing amazing things in the tech world. Another participant, Anita, said she never heard the things she learned at the event and promised to bring all her friends and family for the next edition.

Speaking to media personalities in Port Harcourt after the event on the importance of the Not A Regular Girl Conference , the success recorded, and what the public should look out for next, the convener of Not A Regular Girl Conference, Modupe Ativie, said, “We organized the Not A Regular Girl Conference because we realized that with the high unemployment rate, when girls graduate from school and are not able to get a well-paid white-collar job, they find themselves becoming makeup artists, selling clothes, skin care, and others, which in itself is not bad. However, those sectors are saturated right now. Meanwhile, statistics show that the percentage of women in tech globally is less than 25%. And in Africa and Nigeria, it’s much less.

So we decided to partner with the Global Blockchain Women Alliance (GBWA) to reach out to young girls and catch them young from the time they are beginning to make decisions about their lives and future, introducing them to the opportunities in tech, bringing successful women in tech to share their experiences, relate with them, and mentor them to be successful in tech.

“We want them to know that though it might be tough, it’s possible. We want them to think and act differently and not be the regular girls.” She said.

Speaking on the success so far, she said the project started in 2021 with 12 girls. In 2024, they empowered 38 girls, and this year the target is 3000 girls. Part of the programs is a coding camp in August.

Speaking further, she said the success so far has been amazing. “The minds of these girls have been stimulated, and they keep coming back for more.”

Looking at the future and what to expect, she said, “We are looking to challenge millions of girls to begin to think outside the box, create opportunities, and solve problems using tech and not follow the normal progression. We want to see women who will do amazing things in the tech space and become tech superstars while also being great mothers and wives.”

Modupe Ativie is the founder of Credence, a company that specializes in blockchain and distributed ledger technologies and helps businesses transition seamlessly to the digital economy by moving from centralized to decentralized systems. She is also a serial entrepreneur and has, over the last 12 years, founded and co-founded several successful businesses, including E&A Management Consulting, a corporate training and business consulting firm.

In 2021, she became a member of the African Business Integrity Network, an elite group of corporate governance and business ethics professionals who serve under the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE).

In the Technology & Digital ecosystem, she also serves as the African Lead of the Global Blockchain Women Alliance, an organization focused on increasing the involvement of women and girls in the global blockchain sector. She sits on the Board of SheFAB, the women empowerment arm of the Fintech & Blockchain Association, as the Vice President and is also a certified cryptocurrency compliance specialist and has been involved in several blockchain projects across the EMEA. She’s a mentor to hundreds of young people with a focus on aspiring female tech superstars.

See photos from the event below