Joint initiative to lure girls into STEM
De Beers Group and DTCB, in collaboration with Ministry of Education and Skills Development and WomHub launched a partnership to empower young girls in the field of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).
This initiative is part of a three-year commitment to engage and inspire 10,000 girls and women in STEM by the year 2030. Through this initiative, De Beers and DTCB hosted an engaging half-day workshop on Friday bringing together over 100 female high school students who had the opportunity to explore STEM career possibilities and pose their questions to women engineers. Attending participants are from various Junior Secondary Schools in Gaborone and surrounding areas.
Participating in this event were engineers from De Beers and DTCB, accomplished Batswana professionals, and young women engineers from the Southern Africa Fellowship program. The program provided a comprehensive training to university students in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.
DTCB Corporate Affairs Manager, MacDonald Motsele said DTCB, remains fully committed to partner on initiatives that sustainably impact livelihoods that include a focus on children and education.
De Beers Global Sightholder Sales Corporate Affairs Vice President, Otsile Mabeo said their collaboration with WomEng and DTCB aligns perfectly with the vision to inspire and empower young girls to pursue STEM careers. “Our goal is to be an active partner in support of the communities in which De Beers operates. We have a deliberate and focused effort to improve inclusion and diversity among communities. We also recognize the critical role of STEM in driving economic growth and innovation. In this regard, we are always looking for purposeful ways to ignite a
passion for STEM among young girls and help them envision a future where they can excel in these fields as well as create a more equitable and promising future.” WomHub Chief Operating Officer, Anjani Harjeven emphasised their dedication to bridging gender disparities in STEM. “At WomEng, we have recognized the gender disparities in STEM and are diligently working to create a lasting difference in underserved communities.” She said their GirlEng ‘Ask An Engineer’ initiative, developed in collaboration with De Beers Group and DTCB, embodies collective commitment to achieving gender equality in STEM professions. “We adopt a holistic approach to inspire and empower young girls, enabling them to pursue careers that bring positive contributions to their communities and the world at large.”
Following this event, additional workshops are in the pipeline to reach and engage more girls in STEM across Botswana. These efforts aim to equip more than 750 girls with the skills and knowledge they need to pursue careers in engineering and technology. This aligns with De Beers Group’s commitment to ‘Building Forever’ and DTCB’s ongoing efforts to promote inclusion and diversity through such programs.