FKE GIRLS AND TECH PROGRAM

The future belongs to women in Technology and Innovation

INTRODUCTION

The Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) is a national institution that runs employer-focused programs to improve working environments and encourage social responsibility. FKE in collaboration with the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO) is implementing Girls and Technology (G&T) project. This project targets girls in secondary schools, TVETs and universities in Kenya with a key interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects. The project aims to encourage more women to venture into STEM careers and businesses. This is in line with ensuring that women are not left behind in the work of the future.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT

Innovation, Science and Technology are crucial in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The main goal of the project is to increase the number of girls and women in STEM. The specific objectives of the project are to:

  • Encourage girls and young women to pursue STEM careers
  • Expose young women to STEM /Technology World
  • Engage the private sector and promote collaboration through partnerships

TARGET GROUP

The project targets:

  1. Girls age group 13-18 years, lower secondary schools, upper secondary and KCSE curriculum for secondary schools in Kenya; Mixed or Single Schools across the country
  2. Young women in STEM courses in TVETs and Universities
  3. Women in STEM career positions in various companies and organizations

WHAT IS STEM

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

  • STEM is one of the pillars of the Kenya Vision 2030 pillars and thus an essential component to undertake in bridging the gap between building capacity, skills development and industry.

WHY STEM?

  1. STEM subjects are important because they form the basis of a huge number of highly productive and high-income careers. Some of these jobs might be obvious like, scientists, doctors, engineers, innovators, accountants etc. But others – such as software developers, pilots, and architect- are not so obvious.
  2. STEM subjects are important because they form the basis of huge number of careers and assist in people's employment and livelihoods.
  3. STEM subjects also give you loads of transferrable skills that you can apply in any career that is why it is important to think carefully about your career plans when choosing your secondary level and college