The 2024 STEM Africa Continental Conference, (26-28 November Addis Ababa, Ethiopia). held at the African Union (AU) headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was a transformative gathering organized by the AU and UNESCO in collaboration with key partners. This impactful event focused on building a sustainable and inclusive ecosystem for Africa’s scientific and technological advancement.

IRDAS (Iniciativa Retorno para el Desarrollo del África Subsahariana), through its flagship project ASAE (Alliance STEM Africa Education), proudly participated in this high-level conference. ASAE’s mission to inspire and empower young women to pursue careers in STEM was at the forefront of discussions. By highlighting the achievements of women in these fields, ASAE continues to break barriers, foster inclusion, and promote equality and excellence in STEM disciplines.

Special gratitude goes to the exceptional individuals who represented ASAE and IRDAS at this prestigious event:

• Tadelech Sisay – ASAE & IRDAS Country Representative for Ethiopia.
• Doreen Irungu – Executive Chairperson of Ustawi Afrika and Africa Coordinator for NAWFAT.
• Herane Wondifraw – Co-Founder and Deputy General Manager of i-Xplore Educational Solutions.

Your dedication and contributions to advancing STEM education, promoting gender equality, and building a brighter future for Africa are truly commendable. Together, we are shaping an innovative and inclusive path for the next generation of African leaders in STEM. Thank you for being champions of change and exemplifying the power of collaboration!

Our colleague, the ASAE Project Manager and National Representative of IRDAS in Ethiopia, recently participated in the prestigious 4th Joint ICTP-IAEA Workshop, which delved into advanced concepts in nuclear energy systems to address future global energy demands.

During the workshop, she presented her groundbreaking research on “Assessing Uranium Demand Under Varying Nuclear Power Sector Scenarios.” Her analysis focused on the implications of emerging technologies and policies on the sustainability of uranium resources, highlighting the importance of aligning resource use with future energy needs.

The event featured cutting-edge discussions on innovative reactor designs, improvements in the nuclear fuel cycle, and the integration of nuclear systems with renewable energy sources. Among the key takeaways were strategies for optimizing uranium utilization, enhancing reactor efficiency, and mitigating environmental impacts through advanced technologies.

Engaging with leading experts from diverse fields provided her with fresh perspectives and fostered opportunities for future collaborations. The knowledge and insights gained from this experience will significantly inform her ongoing studies in nuclear energy systems and reactor technologies, aligning them with global efforts to achieve sustainable energy development.

This participation also empowers her to inspire and sensitize young girls to consider careers in science and technology. By sharing her experiences and showcasing the impact of women in nuclear energy research, she aims to break stereotypes and encourage the next generation to pursue STEM fields as a pathway to innovation and global progress.

Building on the African Union’s 2024 theme, “Educate an African fit for the 21st Century“, UNESCO and the African Union Commission (AUC), and key continental organizations are co-organizing this three-day conference to forge a continent-wide strategic partnership to build a transformative Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) ecosystem. This comprehensive approach, coupled with strong collaboration among stakeholders aims to position Africa as an equal player in the future of STEM education, innovation, entrepreneurship, and engineering.

This conference aims to identify the root causes of challenges hindering STEM education, research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in Africa, and to develop effective strategies to overcome them and unlock the continent’s development potential.  

Africa is poised for a transformative leap. By 2030, it will hold the world’s largest youth bulge, with an estimated 500 million people aged 15-24. This demographic dividend presents a tremendous opportunity. However, a significant challenge remains, a critical skills gap exists that threatens to stall progress and that is costly for Africa. Millions of young people on the continent require STEM skills crucial for navigating the demands of the 21st-century workforce. The World Economic Forum, in their Future of Jobs Report 2023, for example states that Africa will need an additional 23 million STEM graduates by 2030 to fill critical positions in engineering, healthcare, and information technology.

The African Union’s Agenda 2063 recognizes the critical role of education, Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) in achieving its ambitious goals. Its strategies namely CESA-16-25 and STISA-2024 operationalize this vision, with a strong emphasis on STEM education across the continent.

26 November 2024 – 9:00 am – 28 November 2024 – 5:00 pm

Location Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Rooms : Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Type : Cat II – Intergovernmental meeting, other than international conference of States

Arrangement type : In-Person

https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/continental-conference-transforming-science-technology-engineering-and-mathematics-africa#:~:text=This%20conference%20aims%20to%20identify%20the%20root%20causes%20of

The future of humanity is inextricably linked to Africa’s future. Yet, established narratives around the future of the continent continue to reflect the long-standing imbalances in knowledge production and in academic research on Africa. Research remains largely dominated by institutions in, or with close links to, the Global North. Reframing the narrative around Africa’s future requires the mobilization of diverse knowledge traditions.  

Transforming knowledge systems is crucial for Africa to overcome the existing barriers and unlock its full potential for sustainable development. The opportunities offered to younger generations for many decades to come will be shaped by how well Africa harnesses knowledge and innovation. There is therefore need for a paradigm shift in how knowledge is generated, shared, and used in Africa, paving the way for a more just, sustainable, and prosperous future. The co-construction of a shared research agenda for the future of Africa must draw from diverse yet complementary forms of knowledge, perspectives, and contexts. It implies interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral, cross-cultural, and forward-looking approaches nourished by diverse ecologies of knowledge, that includes valuing and integrating indigenous knowledge systems.

https://www.unesco.org/en/transforming-knowledge-africas-future#:~:text=The%20UNESCO%20Chairs%20and%20Partners,%2DSouth%2DNorth%20research%20partnerships.

Join us to power progress and co-create a more inclusive, sustainable world.

The World Bank Group Youth Summit is back for its 11^th edition, engaging youth on the most pressing topics facing their generation and bringing together thousands of participants from around the world. This year’s edition will focus on Digital Inclusion, AI, and Sustainable Technology.

The Youth Summit is the largest annual gathering of youth (aged 18-35) hosted by the World Bank Group worldwide. The Summit will take place on May 30-31, 2024, with activities and engagements in different regions and at the World Bank Group headquarters in Washington DC.

The Summit’s mission is to:

1) Empower youth to explore innovative ideas that tackle development challenges;

2) Provide youth with the tools to build and engage in impactful projects; and

3) Promote dialogue between youth, the WBG, and other key stakeholders globally.

https://live.worldbank.org/en/event/2024/world-bank-group-youth-summit-2024-powering-progress-digital-transformation

https://www.worldbank.org/en/events/2024/05/30/youth-summit-2024-powering-progress

This 2023 report presents an update of the 2022 ECW global figures of out-of-school children in emergencies and their educational outcomes using an updated three-stage methodology. This revised methodology provides a more precise, consistent way to measure education outcomes for children and youth affected by crises. It also allows for more detailed estimates of such outcomes compared to the 2022 version and offers a more articulated analysis of trends of education outcomes in emergencies and protracted crises.

The study finds that the number of crisis-affected children in need of quality education is increasing. It also shows that the problem is not just one of access, but of quality. More than half of crisis-affected children are not achieving minimum proficiencies outlined in SDG4, which calls for inclusive, quality education for all. The study highlights that quality education is key in ensuring improved learning outcomes in crises – and fills data gaps on crisis-affected children in urgent need of quality education as a global good for collective action.

https://www.educationcannotwait.org/resource-library/crisis-affected-children-and-adolescents-in-need-education-support-new-global?utm_source=INEE+email+lists&utm_campaign=12f26b92c0-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_10_08_10_35_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_710662b6ab-12f26b92c0-25880608

https://www.educationcannotwait.org/sites/default/files/2023-07/f_ecw1022_globalestimates_paper_mech2_1.pdf