Girl Power: 5 Brilliant Ghanaian Women with Careers in STEM

Although STEM jobs are lucrative, most women are systematically tracked away throughout their education, limiting their chances of landing jobs in the fields as adults.

However, some Ghanaian women have carved out a niche in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

With determination, they defeated odds and became acclaimed personalities in their fields.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Ghana has highlighted some Ghanaian women in STEM.

YEN.com.gh selected five of these women to throw the spotlight on their achievements.

1. Prof Elsie Effah Kaufmann:

Prof Elsie Effah Kaufmann is an Associate Professor and founding Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Ghana.

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She holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE), a Master of Science in Engineering (MSE), and a PhD in Bioengineering, all from the University of Pennsylvania, USA.

2. Nana Efua Bedwei:

Farida Nana Efua Bedwei is a Ghanaian software engineer and co-founder of Logiciel, a fin-tech company in Ghana.

She has a degree in Computer Science from the University of Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom and a certificate in Project Management in 2009 from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).

3. Ivy Barley:

The young Ghanaian digital entrepreneur and 'steminist' joined Microsoft as a programmes manager in 2020.

She is the co-founder and CEO of Developers in Vogue, an organisation helping and motivating women to pursue careers in the tech industry.

Barley has a Bachelor's degree in Actuarial Science from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, KNUST. She received her Master's degree (MPhil) in Mathematical Statistics at the same university and graduated in 2017.

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4. Rita Akosua Dickson:

The alumna of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, KNUST, became the first female Vice-Chancellor of the university on August 1, 2020.

She holds a Bachelor of Pharmac and has a PhD from King's College, University of London, UK, and a certificate in Academic Practice from the same university.

5. Dr Lucy Agyepong:

Dr Lucy Agyepong is an engineer who made history as the first Ghanaian engineer to be appointed to the African Asian Pacific Engineering Council (AAPEC) in 2021.

She has a Masters in Aeronautical and Aerospace Engineering followed by a PhD in Mechanical Engineering with an Aerospace Design focus.

Meet the First Ghanaian to Obtain a PhD in Mathematical Sciences

YEN.com.gh previously reported that Professor Francis Kofi Ampenyin Allotey became the first person in Ghana to achieve a PhD in Mathematical Sciences.

The renowned professor of Mathematics and Scholar of Nuclear Physics influenced the study of Physics and Mathematics in Ghanaian Schools.

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Meet the gorgeous UMaT engineering student who was crowned Miss Cocoa Ghana 2021

He played an integral role in the establishment of the Laser Research Unit in the Physics Department of the University of Cape Coast, projected to be a Centre of excellence to serve the whole of the West Africa Sub-Region.

Source: YEN.com.gh