New Delhi, July 5 (IANS): CyberPeace Foundation (CPF), along with the National Commission for Women (NCW), on Friday launched the fifth phase of the Digital Shakti Campaign, a pan-India project on digitally empowering and upskilling women and girls in cyberspace, with an aim to increase the number to 10 lakh.

Digital Shakti was started in 2018 with the vision of introducing women to the digital era to enhance their skills. This initiative began at Punjab University. So far, it has trained 6 lakh women on how to be safe in the digital world and in the fifth phase, it aims to increase that number to 10 lakh.

"This programme aligns with the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Digital India," said Rekha Sharma, Chairperson, NCW.

"Despite India being on the verge of becoming the third-largest power in the world, women still face struggles in all fields. The gender gap remains significant, with only 43 per cent of women in the science field, falling short of the desired 50 per cent," she added.

Under this programme, the CPF has established responders in each state that will provide training and enhance the skills of women and girls in Digital skills, Cybersecurity awareness, AI, emerging technologies, etc.

"This is one of the biggest campaigns in the nation, running continuously to make a difference. I extend special thanks to the Aasha workers, NGOs, industry professionals, and all the people associated with the campaign," said Major Vineet Kumar, Founder, and Global President of CPF.

In its first phase, the programme sensitised over 60,000 participants, reached 1,05,000 participants in its second phase, and educated 1,50,000 women and girls in the third phase.