US Supports Nigerian Women Advancement in STEM Fields

Shola Oyeyipo

The United State Consul General in Lagos, Mr. John Bray, has advised that it is better for women to increase their participation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields of education.

Addressing participants yesterday in Lagos during a TechWomen Mentoring programme organised for Nigerian female STEM leaders by the US government, in collaboration with Cedar STEM and Entrepreneurship Hub of Lonadek, Nigeria Limited, which had in attendance 16-member delegation of senior tech executives and professionals from the Silicon Valley in US, Bray said it was imperative that all hinderances to women advancement in STEM fields are removed.

Urging that it is critical that women’s voices at all levels find representation in collaborative solutions that would have an impact on them, the US Consul General said the US is convinced that when barriers to women full participation in STEM fields are removed, women do better, families do better, countries do better, and the world does better.

“Whether at home or abroad, promoting women in STEM fields is a top priority of the U.S. government. When Ambassador Symington opened the American Space in Yaba in 2017, co-hosted by Co-Creation Hub (CCHUB), he pledged the U.S. government’s support for additional projects that might expand the use of technology in Nigeria.

“We have since funded a number of projects to increase STEM education in different parts of the country. In October 2017, we hosted RoboRAVE, a robotics education program in Lagos and Abeokuta. Last December, we funded the establishment of a technology hub in Lagos that will host training and mentoring sessions for persons living with disabilities in various technology-based skills,” he said.

Bray exoalined tgat the goal of encouraging the role of girls and women in STEM fields has been the cornerstone of the technology-learning programs funded by the US Mission in Nigeria.

“More broadly, the United States has invested millions of dollars to directly advance gender equality across sub-Saharan Africa, through activities that promote political and economic opportunities for women, access to health and education services, and efforts to prevent and respond to gender-based violence.”

The delegation members were representatives of various organisations such as Twitter, LinkedIn, Netflix, and Mozilla. Among them are also representatives of Autodesk, Women College Tech, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Juniper Networks, Fairrer Samani Group, Northgate Environmental Management, Jessica Dickinson Goodman Consulting, the Institute of International Education and particularly Carolyn Ward, of the US Bureau of
Educational and Cultural Affairs who is accompanied the group of tech leaders.