Girls can only choose STEM careers if they see what it is about
Preparing young girls for careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) formed the basis of an intensive workshop conducted in the last week of July in Windhoek for female high school learners.
The workshop was hosted by the Debmarine Namdeb Foundation in partnership with the not-for-profit NGO, WomEng, with the intention to have reached 10,000 girls by 2030.,
This interactive and informative event provided 240 high school girls an opportunity to learn about future careers in STEM through exposure to the careers of women who are practising engineers.
The professional women came from Debmarine Namibia, the Namibia University of Science and Technology, the University of Namibia, and young women engineers from the Southern Africa Fellowship.
The keynote speaker from the Ministry of Education, Deputy Executive Director, Ms Edda Bohn stressed the importance of strengthening girl participation in STEM subjects at primary and secondary school level. The WomEng programme, powered by De Beers Group, focuses on training University and University of Technology students across Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa.
Daniel Kali, Country Representative, De Beers Group said the Group is delighted to continue its partnership with WomEng to help unlock the full interest and participation of girls in STEM careers. “As the global leader in diamonds, we know that the world’s sparkle can only be fully illuminated when all members of society have equal and unhindered access to opportunities,” he said.
“As a Foundation, our vision is to accelerate economic inclusion and support diverse voices to help shape the future of our business, communities, and society. Through strategic partnerships we will continually strengthen our programmes to support equal opportunities across all forms of diversity including gender, race, age, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.” said Brent Eiseb, the foundation chairman.
More workshops will be conducted in other Namibian venues with the intention to reach at least 600 local girls this year.
