INTERNATIONAL DAY OF WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SCIENCE

As the world is preparing to mark the International Day of Women and Girls in Science on Sunday (February 11), The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has revealed that less than 30% of researchers worldwide are women.

“Science and gender equality are both vital for sustainable development, yet women and girls continue to be excluded from fully participating in science: less than 30% of researchers worldwide are women,” UNESCO said.

The International Day of Women and Girls in Science, celebrated each year was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly to promote full and equal access to and participation in science for women and girls.

This day is a reminder that women and girls play a critical role in science and technology in communities and that their participation should be strengthened. The celebration is led by UNESCO and UN-Women, in collaboration with institutions and civil society partners that promote women and girls’ access to and participation in science.

UNESCO noted that tackling some of the greatest challenges of the agenda for sustainable development -- from improving health to combatting climate change -- will rely on harnessing all talent.

“That means getting more women working in these fields. Diversity in research expands the pool of talented researchers, bringing in fresh perspectives, talent and creativity,” the organisation said.

In Uganda for instance, sciences were made compulsory, but ‘O’level results released Wednesday indicate that although there is some improvement in performance in sciences and mathematics, overall performance continues to be poor for the majority of candidates.

One of the teachers attributed the poor performance in sciences to bad attitude of the learners and employment of teachers who did not pass sciences highly.