Professor Elsie Effah Kaufmann, the Dean of Engineering Sciences at the University of Ghana, has lauded the increased enrollment of female students in engineering courses.
She has acknowledged the dedication and commitment some of them have put in place to overcome the traditional gender barriers in the field, emphasising the importance of inclusivity and diversity within the engineering disciplines.
According to her, female participation in engineering courses in the past had not been encouraging, with just one out of ten engineering students being a female at the University of Ghana.
However, she says the narrative has changed due to the encouragement they have given female students with interest to pursue engineering programmes over the years.
She shared her insights during an EduSpots-organised training session for local leaders and teachers, focusing on education in rural communities held in the Komenda Edina Eguafo-Abrem district in the Central region.
The training aims to further connect and equip over 300 local leaders and teachers who are using education as a tool to address local challenges. The NGO envisions transforming rural community education from a decolonized model of educational support in low-resource settings.
The host of the National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) during her interview with Onua News’ Central Regional correspondent, Kwame Kakraba, disclosed that her personal life has served as a testimony to young females in bridging the gender gap in engineering programmes.
She also used the opportunity to urge young girls in communities not to underestimate themselves in any career aspirations they have.
“I have been using my life as an example to advise them that I am a woman but I was able to do Engineering and rise to become Dean of Engineering so they can also make it. And that is what has encouraged some of the women to who are coming to do Engineering know that they are not alone but there are other women like myself.
“That is what has increased female enrollment in my school. Initially women at School of Engineering Sciences at Legon used to be just one in ten but now it is 31.8% so we’ll keep encourage them so that whoever has intentions of doing it can do it,” she admonished.
Prof. Kaufmann lauded EduSpots for the role it has played in many communities which is also encouraging young girls to enroll in engineering programmes at the university.
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