2021 International Day of Women and Girls in Science

In December 2015, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution that established the annual International Day to recognize the critical role women and girls play in science and technology communities.

Every year the International Day of Women and Girls in Science is implemented by UNESCO and UN Women, in collaboration with intergovernmental agencies and institutions, as well as civil society partners, that aim to promote women and girls in science. The day’s purpose is to promote full and equal access to participation in science for women and girls.

The Afghan Government ensures that equal participation of women and girls in the fields of science is a critical right and a means by which women can achieve their aspirations in life.

The all-girl Afghan robotics team is a great example of girl’s aspiration in life through science and technology.

In the months since their plight attracted worldwide attention, the all-girl Afghan robotics team have carried on doing what they do best: displaying their remarkable ingenuity at robotics competitions around the globe. In November 2017, the Afghan team won an “Entrepreneur Challenge” at a festival in Estonia for developing a solar-powered robot that could help farmers with seeding and other tasks — offering a potential boon for their heavily agricultural country.

Their ball-sorting robot, built to distinguish between contaminated and clean water, won them a silver medal for “courageous achievement” at an international robotics competition in Washington, D.C.

In March 2020, the Robotics Team work on an open-source, low-cost ventilator as the coronavirus pandemic hit the war-torn nation. It took the team almost four months to finalise the ventilator, which is partly based on a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) design, and they received guidance from experts at Harvard University.

Roya Mahboob, the first female CEO of a tech company in Afghanistan and one of the team’s sponsors, said that the girls’ real legacy will go far beyond robotics.

“When the girls came back [from Washington] there was a huge movement — the leaders, the communities, the families, everyone was changing their views on women in science and technology. They became an example of hope, happiness, and a sense of pride for the Afghan community.”

The government of Afghanistan is committed to helping women and girls realize their full potential in science and technology including through establishing dedicated technology schools and innovation centers in the country.

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