More opportunities continue to surface for women in tech as applications are now being accepted for the 2017 batch of  Techwomen, an initiative of the U.S. Department of  State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

Techwomen is a professional mentorship and exchange program developed  to strengthen relations between the United States, the Middle East, and Africa. According to a statement on its website, the initiative  “identifies emerging women leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) from 22 program countries in Africa, Central and South Asia, and the Middle East.”

This initiative comes with a robust package that covers all expenses from air tickets ( to and fro), housing, and meal stipends amongst others.

To benefit from this opportunity, applicants must tick the following boxes:

• Be women with, at minimum, two years full-time professional experience in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields. Internships and other unpaid work experience does not count toward the two-year professional experience requirement.
• Demonstrate themselves as emerging leaders in their chosen professional track through their work experience, volunteer experience, community activities and education.
• Have, at minimum, a bachelor’s degree/four-year university degree or equivalent.
• Be proficient in written and spoken English.

• Be citizens and permanent residents of Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Palestinian Territories, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan or Zimbabwe at the time of application and while participating in the program.

• Be eligible to obtain a U.S. J-1 exchange visitor visa.

• Not have applied for an immigrant visa to the United States or participated in a visa lottery in the past five years.

• Not hold U.S. citizenship or be a U.S. legal permanent resident.

Think you’ve got what it takes? Apply here.

For more information, go here