Currently there are two engineering graduates doing volunteer work at a low-cost housing programme. This under-representation has been created by the widely held notion that hard sciences and engineering are not appropriate disciplines for women. Socio-cultural factors, discrimination, and lack of self confidence have negatively affected African women and their choice of careers. For women to overcome these barriers, they have to be courageous, hardworking and persistent. Even so, their success is hindered by the limited support for science and research by African governments and by inadequate knowledge and skills on how to access resources available through local and international funding agencies.
Women form the majority of the work force in many African countries.
Unless they are encouraged to pursue science and technology-oriented disciplines, education and research in African countries will continue to lag behind other developing countries. Science can solve many economic, ecological and medical problems faced by Africa. The interaction between gender and science can help accelerate and shape the development of the continent. For submission of a paper, proposal, title and abstract, please see the enclosed application form. For enquiries as to specific sections of the congress, please contact the person listed beneath the relevant section description.