More women should study STEM courses

Today, the world marks the 6th International Day of Women and Girls in Science. The day was established ‘to recognise the critical roles women and girls play in science and technology communities,’ and in order to ‘achieve full and equal access to and participation in science for women and girls, and further achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls’.

Despite many gender-responsive policies at the national and institutional levels, women are still under-represented in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Statistics indicate that men outnumber women globally as students, researchers, educators and workers in STEM disciplines.