UNIS/SGSM/1474
7 February 2025
Ten years ago, the first International Day of Women and Girls in Science recognized a fundamental truth: women’s participation is essential for building a better world through science and technology. I saw that enormous potential firsthand when I was teaching engineering, and I saw the remarkable talent, creativity, and determination of countless women scientists.
Yet today, women still represent just one-third of the global scientific community. Deprived of adequate funding, publishing opportunities and leadership positions in universities, women and girls continue to face an uphill battle in building careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Look no further than the development of new digital technologies. Men dominate the field at every level—including in Artificial Intelligence. The result is a surge of biased algorithms and embedded inequality, risking a new era of digital chauvinism.
The more that women are excluded from STEM, the more we limit our collective power to address urgent global challenges, from climate change and food security to public health and technological transformation.
We can and must do more to level the playing field
By expanding scholarships, internships and mentorship opportunities to open doors for women and girls in STEM; creating workplaces that attract, retain and advance women in science; encouraging girls’ engagement in STEM from an early age; championing women leaders in science through the media; and dismantling gender stereotypes.
The Pact for the Future, agreed last September by Member States, gives renewed momentum to these goals by committing to address barriers preventing the full, equal and meaningful access for women and girls in scientific fields.
On the tenth anniversary of this important day, and as we reflect on 30 years since the Beijing Declaration, let’s help pave a path to STEM careers that women and girls deserve – and our world needs.
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Barbados signed and deposited its instrument of ratification for the United Nations Convention on the International Effects of Judicial Sales of Ships (the “Beijing Convention on the Judicial Sale of Ships”) at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on 8 May 2025.
Journalists are invited to cover the 34th session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) to be held from 19 to 23 May in Vienna, Austria.
"On this Day of Vesak, I extend my warmest wishes to Buddhists worldwide as they commemorate the birth, enlightenment, and passing of the Buddha." — António Guterres
"In a world plagued by conflict and division, World Press Freedom Day highlights a fundamental truth: Freedom for people depends on freedom of the press." — António Guterres
