Social, family, infrastructure bar woman participation in technology: experts
Experts have identified three main barriers that stop woman's participation in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) in Bangladesh.
"I have conducted a survey on 100 people, 80 students and 20 teachers, and found three main barriers – social, family and infrastructure – as the problems for women in Bangladesh in participating in STEM," said Nova Ahmed, associate professor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering of North South University, quoting his research paper titled "Understanding Challenges for Women in STEM" at a programme on Monday.
ActionAid Bangladesh organised the programme "Innovation's Access to and participation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)" marking International Women's Day.
While talking about the problems, Nova Ahmed said family and society do not want women to study STEM. Secondly, women cannot work at night in a lab as they have to return home by evening, which is not a problem for males.
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"During the research, I have found problems in the attitude of males towards females as there may be some software farms that do not want to hire females. Some male participants told me females cannot be good engineers and they should remain at home and raise children," said Nova.
She said this type of attitude from educated people must be changed. The government has to implement policies in this regard.
At the programme, ActionAid Bangladesh Country Director Farah Kabir said while structural barriers can be fixed, social barriers are a bigger issue. All have to work together to solve it. In this age of technology, all need to know basic science. Learning science should be fun.
Chief Guest of the programme, Deputy Minister for Education Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel said, "We have structural problems behind the backwardness of women because it determines what a boy and a girl will choose as their profession. Our education system and education ministry are largely responsible for this."
