Women researchers are asking for more help in their work, especially in moving up the career ladder.
They came together to connect and support each other in their various journeys across their disciplines in a three-day networking workshop in Nairobi.
Brought together by the Mawazo Institute’s inaugural Mawazo Connects, the women expressed shared experiences working in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.
Evaline Sang, a researcher in agribusiness management, said the challenges facing women in STEM research are numerous.
She said getting access to funding for research is especially difficult for women in the male-dominated STEM industry.
“The industry can get very competitive and getting grants to conduct research becomes hard sometimes. Without fellow women in the field to support you, you can easily lose hope,” she said.
Already, fewer women advance in higher education to become researchers or experts in fields of science.
The Unesco Science Report suggests that women make up 53 per cent of graduates at the bachelor’s level, and 55 per cent at the master’s level.
“Only 44 per cent of women advance to become PhD graduates, 30 per cent become researchers and 12 per cent become members of agenda-setting national science academies,” they said.
A worldwide analysis of over five million research papers and articles revealed that women account for fewer than 30 per cent of authorships and papers and that publications with women as the sole or lead author are less likely to be cited.
Dr Fiona Wanjiku Moejes, Mawazo Institute CEO said women researchers should be supported in their work.
“Women’s voices are missing in research yet there is so much they can contribute towards development, especially of Africa,” she said.
She said the workshop is meant to bring together women to support each other’s work and collaborate on a larger scale.
“It can be very lonely for women in research, on top of facing stereotyping and being side-lined often. Support for the phenomenal work women in STEM are doing can not be over-emphasised,” she said.