Paving the way for women leaders in science, technology and innovation

Building on this year’s International Women's Day theme, African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD), together with the International Veterinary Vaccinology Network (IVVN), hosted a webinar on women in science and leadership on Wednesday 31 March 2021.

As the world celebrated women’s outstanding achievements in different fields, including science, technology, and innovation, the global underrepresentation of women in science remained glaring, with data showing that less than 30 percent of the world’s scientists are women and only 3 percent make it to the top echelons of their profession. We need to move beyond celebrating the minority women in science and leadership to exploring ways to plug the gap. We need to pay attention to how we can pave the way for more women to access science careers, grow into leadership, and last in those leadership positions and sustain the pipeline.

A moderated panel discussion featuring women in science, technology, and innovation, the IVVN-AWARD webinar highlighted some of the challenges and opportunities for women leading scientific advances in times of crisis and accountability mechanisms for institutions’ commitment to supporting women in leadership. The discussion cast a spotlight on some outstanding women in science and stimulated a conversation on overcoming the systemic barriers that perpetuate the yawning gender gap in science.

Dr Michèle Mbo’o-Tchouawou, Deputy Director of AWARD, chaired the event and panel members included:

• Dr Cathrine Ziyomo, Senior Scientist and Director, BECA-ILRI Hub
• Dr Esther Kanduma, Lecturer, University of Nairobi and AWARD Fellow
• Jayne Quoiani, Education & Engagement Officer, Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh

• Dr Barberine Silatsa Assongo, Research Fellow, University of Dschang, and an Africa Biosciences Challenge Fund Fellow

Thank you to all our panellists, our chair, and everyone who joined us!