Strengthening higher education capacity to promote gender inclusive participation in Science, Technology and Innovation

Despite global Science, Technology and Innovation (ST&I) initiatives to ensure achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) number 5 on gender equality, and those geared towards supporting greater engagement of women especially in research for development, fewer women are still employed in the Science, Technology and Innovations (ST&I) sector. The Forum for African Women Vice Chancellors (FAWoVC) is exploring interventions to promote women in higher education, and ST&I. A baseline study of the ST&I ecosystem from four African countries, reveals that higher education is still skewed against ST&I. Female participation is still low and steeply declines at the graduate and academic leadership levels. In promoting female engagement, the policy framework at national and institutional level needs to target the overall education pipeline and create an environment that supports students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) and females in the R&D employment sector.