The Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria APWEN, Lagos Chapter, has complained about the rate at which female engineers are abandoning the profession, because they feel it’s a man’s profession.
The spokesperson at the International women’s Day public Lecture themed ‘Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion for an Equitable Future’, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ashiru expressed concern about this recently in Lagos.
Ashiru said, “We are losing female engineers to other sectors; they go first to auditing firms, then move to banks and they are doing well? When you see them in banks and you ask what they studied, you hear chemical engineering.
“On empowering women engineers, government policies and organisational initiatives play a crucial role in promoting gender diversity in engineering.
“In addition, scholarships for women in engineering, funding for women-led research and advocacy for gender parity in engineering fields are essential steps.”
She stated that engaging women for inclusion in engineering was not just about achieving gender equity.
She added, “It is about leveraging diverse perspectives to foster innovation and creativity in solving some of the world’s most complex problems.
“A collaborative effort from educational institutions, and corporations; women must learn to be celebrated. One of the things I did when my daughters were growing up was to celebrate them, and it gave them a sense of pride. In addition, always publicise success stories”
Dr , Atinuke Owolabi, the newly elected chairman, Speaking on the launch of a Resource, Technology & Innovation Hub to empower female engineering students at the event, said the main objective of the project was to create a functional ecosystem for the female engineering students.
In her words, “The primary objective of the Resource, Technology & Innovation Hub is to create a collaborative ecosystem where female Engineering students (with 10 per cent of our boys), young Engineers and professional women engineers can access resources, exchange knowledge, and develop innovative solutions to address societal challenges.”
Dr Adebisi Osim, the President of APWEN called for a more inclusive environment where women’s contributions are promoted in the country.
She said, “As women, our role is to impact the next generation and prove a point that we can also do the right thing”.
