Latin America’s digital economy is transforming, driven by a new generation of entrepreneurs reshaping industries. Over the last decade, digitalization has surged, supercharged by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite these strides, women remain underrepresented in the region’s digital workforce.

While more women are stepping into leadership roles in Latin America’s technology sector, they face a variety of obstacles, including limited access to financing. In Colombia, for example, women hold only 24% of information technology jobs. Broad efforts to increase digital skills, such as Google’s commitment to support training for one million Latin Americans, will help. But more focused efforts are needed to ensure women are not left behind.

Even so, female entrepreneurs are breaking through barriers, including Domenica Obando, CEO of Talently, and Loreanne García, co-founder of Kavak, senior leaders of two of the region’s most influential technology companies.

Domenica Obando, CEO of Talently

As CEO and co-founder of Talently, a tool for connecting Latin American technology talent with global job opportunities, Domenica Obando of Peru is transforming technology workforce recruitment.

“Part of being an entrepreneur is going against the tide,” Obando said in an interview. 

“Personally, I have chosen to remain ‘ignorant’ of the limitations women may face, and I constantly maintain a mindset of competing on equal terms. This helps me stay excited about the challenges ahead.”

Talently does not have initiatives aimed exclusively at women, but its female leadership fosters an inclusive environment.

“Being a company led by a female CEO is a great example for our leadership, which has always been naturally diverse,” she said. “We have not needed to implement strategies beyond meritocracy.”

Loreanne García, Co-founder of Kavak

Loreanne García of Venezuela, co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Kavak, has disrupted the used car market in Latin America. Mexico’s first “unicorn”–a startup valued at $1 billion or more–Kavak is now worth over $8 billion.

“In Latin America, entrepreneurship often means creating several solutions to make a great product work. If the product solves a problem with agility, security, and at a reasonable cost, it has the foundation for success.”

Under García’s leadership, Kavak has not only reshaped the automotive market, but also opened doors for women in leadership.

“The entrepreneurial ecosystem has increasingly seen more women in key leadership positions. It’s always gratifying to open paths for other women in an industry historically dominated by men.”

Even so, García said, many talented women are still reluctant to compete for senior positions. “There are very effective profiles that sometimes don’t raise their hands to take on opportunities,” she said. “This used to happen with women in roles traditionally held by men. It’s crucial for leaders to empower their teams to feel confident in stepping up to challenges.”

The Next Generation of Female Leaders

The success of Obando and García show the contributions women make in Latin America’s technology sector, but they remain outliers. To replicate their experiences, governments will have to expand access to education, promote gender equality in the private sector, and design public-private partnerships that help close the gender digital skills gap. Fortunately, there are promising models, including a partnership between Liberty Latin America and the Society of Women Coders to enroll 800 young women in a 20-week virtual course on digital literacy, web development, and coding.

For their part, businesses could establish female mentorship programs and create targeted initiatives to bring women into leadership roles. NTT DATA Colombia is already doing so, and the number of women in the company’s leadership positions has increased from 18% in 2021 to 41%. At the same time, Mexico’s Institute for Information Technology and Brazil’s Meninas Digitais are equipping the next generation of female technology professionals. Laboratoria, a Peruvian nonprofit organization, has trained 3,000 women and helped 90% of them find technology jobs across Latin America since 2014. Google.org has committed $300 million over the next five years to support nonprofits focused on areas that include economic opportunity for women.