More women scientists can help create wealth

Cape Coast, Feb. 5, GNA - Mrs Carlien Bou-Chedid, Executive Secretary of the Ghana Institution of Engineers (GhIE), on Saturday said the nation could reach the state of "wealth creation" only when more women were encouraged to take-up courses in science, technology and engineering.

Women she said constituted more than 50 percent of the population and if they did not get involved in providing the scientific and technological needs of society, the country could not move forward in that direction.

Mrs Bou-Chedid said this at a youth rally organised by Women in Engineering (WINE) of the Cape Coast Polytechnic Engineering Students Association of Ghana for second cycle schools in the Cape Coast municipality.

The rally, which was to enlighten and encourage women to pursue courses in engineering to erase the perception among men that women feared such areas was on the theme: "Empowering the girl child in science education".

Mrs Bou-Chedid said many of the developed countries invested a lot in the advancement of science and urged the government to invest more in science education particularly at the tertiary level.

She advised girls not to be scared of the study of sciences, particularly mathematics, adding that mathematics was a discipline, which could help them to approach issues in a systematic way and that they should not perceive it as a difficult subject.

She advised the few girls who were currently pursuing science courses to serve as role models and assist and share their knowledge with their colleagues so as to break the myth surrounding the studies of science subjects by girls.

The Central Regional Girl-child Education Officer, Mrs Rebecca Nkomsah said the vision of getting about 30 percent of women involved in the study of science and technology by 2010 would not be achieved if more girls were not encouraged to take up science education at the tertiary level.