In a world where women are underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), the initiatives that UN Women El Salvador is undertaking with Muchas Más, a Salvadoran feminist organization that has been working for over twenty years with young Salvadoran women represent a transformative experience for equality.
The MELYT program, implemented by UN Women and financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI), through the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), has generated spaces, throughout 2023, for inclusion and women’s participation in STEM areas.
The approach goes beyond STEM education, considering the barriers that the country’s young women face to participate in these fields, linked to gender stereotypes and socio-cultural barriers. In the Rural STEM Campuses promoted by UN Women the objective is to affirm the rights of young women, rebuilding their expectations and their confidence in the approach to STEM areas. The campuses introduce girls to scientific subjects and at the same time strengthen their knowledge of their rights regarding the prevention of gender violence.
As one participant says: “The biggest impact was discovering STEM careers that were unknown to me and learning about women’s rights. I talked about it with my family. It made me feel capable and valuable.”
Globally, women make up approximately 38% of people employed in STEM professions and represent only 36.8% of graduates in these fields. Although girls score higher in reading and 9 in 10 girls perform as well as boys in math, the gap in skills improvement, such as enrollment in STEM courses, remains large. Only 17% of inventors cited in international patent applications in 2022 were women, compared to 83% of men. Women are twice as likely as men to be software literate, which may limit their participation in dynamic and innovative economic sectors.
In this sense, the Tech Camp initiative trains young people in front-end and back-end programming, one of the sectors with the best job prospects and with the least offer for women. In addition to transversal training on equality and gender rights, the Tech Camps offer support and internships in leading companies in the sector.
Without a doubt, investing in the education and upskilling of women in STEM areas not only has the potential to change lives, but also shape a more equitable and just future.
