Kenya hosts boot camp to mentor young girls in sciences

Kenya’s ministry of education in conjunction with the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) will from April 9 to 13 hold a boot camp to motivate young girls to take up scientific and engineering disciplines.
UNESCO said in a statement on Tuesday that the five-day boot camp aims to demystify myths that have prevented young women from taking up science, mathematics, engineering and technology (STEM) despite their promise of rewarding careers.
« The first STEM Camp for 2018 will include mentorship and career talks in STEM, a training on coding and robotics as well as linkages with university and industry through visits and demonstrations, » said UNESCO.
The UN agency revealed that 150 high school girls and 27 teachers will participate in the first ever boot camp to be held in Kenya to popularize scientific disciplines to the female gender.
According to UNESCO, female high school students will be mentored by accomplished scholars and industrialists to boost their interest in mathematics and applied sciences.
Participants will also visit premises of leading technology companies to gain practical knowledge on how they are transforming local economies.
« The visit to work environments will expose girls to industries and guide them on how to relate the subjects they learn in school to the real world of work and their daily lives through demonstrations and practice, » said UNESCO.
Kenya’s mobile phone company, Safaricom, and several foreign firms have also partnered with UNESCO to host the boot camp that will be held in Machakos County, located 60 kilometers south east of the capital, Nairobi.
It is hoped that the boot camp will contribute to creation of a critical mass of Kenyan young women who have excelled in mathematics and engineering disciplines.
« It is of ground-breaking importance to inspire girls to reach their full potential, to create opportunities and challenge stereotypes, » said UNESCO, adding that attainment of sustainable development goals on quality education and gender equality is key to hasten Kenya’s socio-economic transformation.