By Eunice Hilda A. Mensah
Accra, Dec 2, GNA – The Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) with support from the Mastercard Foundation has partnered Technical Universities to offer students, especially female senior high school (SHS) leavers scholarship programmes.
To be a beneficiary, the students should be interested in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET)-related programmes.
The programme would offer scholarship to 80 per cent females and 20 per cent males, out of which between five and 15 per cent should be persons with disability and refugees.
Professor Esi Sutherland-Addy, a Board Member, FAWE Ghana Chapter, said a study conducted showed that there was a profile of vulnerability of girls when in terms TVET, where there seemed to be exclusion.
She said the UN had realised the role of high education in the current economy and Africa which is not an exception, needed higher and equitable education to trigger economic inclusion.
She made the remark at a meeting between FAWE Ghana and the Vice Chancellors and Registrars of the Technical Universities nationwide and the Akenten Appiah-Menka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development in Accra on the FAWE Mastercard Foundation Phase II project.
High poverty levels, inability to afford fees and issues of gender stereotyping, she said were some of the challenges or hindrances to females accessing STEM education at the tertiary level.
The project would therefore provide them with access to familiarise themselves with digital literacy, entrepreneurship, conflict resolution by using gender responsive modules, she explained.
Prof. Sutherland-Addy appealed to the Vice Chancellors and Registrars to enable a smooth and late admission of the beneficiaries of the project into the universities with preferential treatments.
Reverend Professor John Frank Eshun, Chairman of the Vice-Chancellors of Technical Universities of Ghana, said by embracing the principles of equity and inclusivity in the policies, programmes and practices of Technical Universities, they could bridge the gaps in educational access and create pathways for all students to thrive.
“As Vice Chancellors of Technical Universities, we are tasked not only with advancing academic excellence but also with ensuring that our institutions are accessible, inclusive and equitable for all students irrespective of their backgrounds, physical abilities or socio-economic status,” he added.
He said the 1992 Constitution in Article 25 (c), called on them to eliminate barriers that hindered access to education, ensuring that all individuals regardless of gender, disability, economic background, or location had the opportunity to realize their full potential through education.
Despite efforts to engage more women in TVET, he said their representation in technical fields remained disproportionately low.
This is due to a variety of factors including gender stereotypes, limited access to quality TVET programmes and society expectations about the roles women should play in the economy.
To address the imbalance, he suggested that the nation actively promoted policies that encouraged females’ participation in TVET programmes and as well provide a learning environment that supported their needs.
“We must ensure that our curricula, teaching methodologies, and support services are responsive to the diverse learning styles of both male and female students. This is not just a matter of providing equal opportunities but dismantling the structural barriers that contribute to gender inequality in education,” he advised.
Ms Anna Nabere, the Programmes Manager, FAWE, said the FAWE and Mastercard Foundation Phase II programme was being implemented in 10 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa – Ghana, Uganda, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Liberia, Malawi, Senegal, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The programme was pertinent now, she said because young people in Africa experienced multifaceted problems including acute poverty and vulnerability due to missed education opportunities (ILO, 2022).
Moreover, she said there was a mismatch and shortage of skills that could lead to dignified work – need for linkage, relevancy of training content to job market.
Other challenges were limited options to tertiary education if not denied and poor quality of training, as well as socio cultural barriers to girls such as forced marriages after secondary school.
Ms Nabere noted that the programme would be implemented in regions that ranked high on the poverty index and beneficiaries would be selected from there such as Northeast, Savannah, Upper East, Upper West, Northern, Volta and Oti.
GNA
