On the occasion of International Girls in ICT Day, the University of Prishtina’s Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering (FIEK) organized the “SHEcurity Conference & Hackathon 2025”, focusing on cybersecurity and gender empowerment.
Since 2015, FIEK has hosted cybersecurity competitions to continuously enhance student skills.
This year, for the first time, a Capture the Flag (CTF) platform was launched, aligning with other regional universities.
Professor Blerim Rexha:
“The goal of ‘SHEcurity & Hackathon 2025’ is to empower the role of girls and women in our society.”
Dean Isak Shabani:
“Previously, women’s participation in ICT was very low, leading to underrepresentation in leadership and tech industries.”
“Today, global female representation in leadership has reached 40%, and we aim for equal participation across all sectors.”
Vice Dean Majlinda Gjelaj:
“Kosovo is a small country with big dreams, and the University of Prishtina is committed to supporting equality through curriculum reform and student well-being.”
“Gender equality has been achieved through early education investments.”
Drenusha Shehu, Operations Manager at Raiffeisen Tech Kosovo:
“This is the fourth time Raiffeisen is sponsoring this event due to its quality and open-mindedness.”
She emphasized the importance of agile methodology in cybersecurity and its growing application in Kosovo’s industry.
Arbena Musa, PhD student at FIEK:
“We’ve transformed how we assess cybersecurity courses through Capture the Flag.”
“The best way to learn cybersecurity is by breaking things — responsibly.”
The conference also featured a panel discussion on enhancing collaboration between industry and academia, offering students and professionals a chance to gain practical knowledge and inspiration to contribute to the growing ICT sector.
