Earlier today, Infosys Foundation announced an INR 100 crore commitment towards STEM scholarships to benefit over 2,000 underprivileged girl students, across India, for their higher education. As we bring this program to life, I want to share with you the stats that’ve been on my mind.
The number of employable men and women in India saw an uptick this year. Heartening, isn’t it, that women account for greater than half of this employable population? I wish I could say the same about their participation in the workforce, but sadly, according to reports, it actually dipped from around 36 percent in 2021 to just over 33 percent this year. Even in 2023, across large parts of our country, cultural conditioning still recognizes the role of a man as the primary breadwinner, and a woman’s duty largely restricted to managing domestic affairs, except when the family income needs bolstering. What’s even more dismaying is the impact this mindset has on young girls, who themselves start to believe that caring for little siblings and supporting their family must take precedence over education, and eventually prioritizing marriage over financial independence and a career ends up becoming the chosen way forward. Our teams from Infosys Foundation often observe this – and this is especially true in economically weaker segments of society where generationally there is lesser prioritization of education, especially higher education, as a result of which the traditional outlook remains unchallenged.
While the solution to this problem is certainly not linear or simple, an important aspect that needs to be addressed is raising the aspirations of girls. STEM education can serve this cause in a unique and compelling way. It improves one’s disposition to be curious, ask questions, make interpretations, arrive at conclusions, solve problems, and communicate findings. In addition to hard skills, STEM education, at undergrad and post grad levels, moulds learners and helps them to participate in meaningful and contextualized ways in the real-world. Initiatives like the one announced by Infosys Foundation today are indeed valuable. But along with it, there’s so much that each of us can do too. We need to be that sibling, parent, friend, well-wisher and employer that stands up for girls whose education, whose careers are at risk of being cut short. With advice, with financial assistance, with support, with advocacy – with whatever is relevant in the context, and with all that we can muster – we must help. Because, the history of social change is the coming together of actions big and small – and before they manifest as action, what’s key is thought and support. Let’s make our support deliberate.
You can read more about the STEM Stars program here infy.com/3QHCNn6. And, if you do know of an emerging star who can benefit from this initiative, please do share and encourage her to apply for this scholarship.
#womeninstem #educationempowers #navigateyournext
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1moImpressive growth!