For so long, we have been told that science and mathematics are fields of cold, objective data and a man’s place. We have been told that we cannot pursue a career in science and mathematics because it is a perceived tough study area.
But emerging trends tell a different story; more women are now opting to take the science and mathematics route and are even doing much better than men. This, however, shouldn’t mean we should despise men, but rather, it should encourage us to have a different perception about science and mathematics that we can excel in this field.
Women are now rewriting what was perceived impossible for them to do and achieve; they are now breaking the barriers that restricted them from excelling and are creating a future so bright—an inclusive future that we all need if we are to achieve our country’s long-term development agenda—Malawi 2063 (MW2063).
We should also get inspired by some women who are flying high in this field. Malawi has plenty of them, and even at young ages, they are proving to the world that the future is women. In a world where women are taking the lead in science and mathematics, it is guaranteed that there won’t be high dropout rates of the girl child because the inspiration will be at almost every corner of the communities.
In essence, let’s work hard on dismantling the barriers that have long restricted our active participation, especially in the fields of science and mathematics because without us, the equation is simply not complete.
And to the young women standing on the edge of these respective disciplines, science and mathematics are not passive clubs to be invited into; they are languages for solving humanity’s hardest problems. The complex systems of our world need our perspective.
Simply put, the equation of human progress remains fundamentally incomplete as long as half of the world’s minds are underrepresented at the blackboard; in the classrooms and in the decision making places. It is, therefore, time that we break the remaining barriers, claim our space at the bench and change the formula entirely.
