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World Capital of Women and Girls in Science
Girls in Science Artwork

Malta has been designated as the first World Capital for Women and Girls in Science for the inaugural year 2023 – 2024 by the Royal Academy for Science International Trust (RASIT). The Capital of Women and Girls in Science is a global initiative that is offered under the auspices of RASIT to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion in all fields of science and place these issues at the heart of the world’s attention for a yearlong celebration.

Context

The idea for the establishment of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science was generated during the 1st High Level World Women’s Health and Development Forum organised by RASIT and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, held in February 2015 at the United Nations Headquarters. Malta, along with RASIT, put forward a resolution, which led to the establishment of this international day. During the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Resolution (A/RES/70/212) was adopted, proclaiming 11th February as the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. This resolution is significant because it aims at achieving gender parity in educational opportunities and science participation.

In this regard, Malta places a lot of importance on work on Women and Girls in Science internationally, and have sought to actively participate in activities that mark this International Day, and which bring forward work in the field.

As the World Capital country, Malta has developed and is currently implementing a year-long program of scientific, social, cultural, and economic activities to attract the interest of a broad international public.

Events and Initiatives

  • A logo and artwork were created in order to standardise branding of this initiative.
  • “The Maltavarians” Comic books (published by the Malta Digital Innovation Authority – MDIA): The comic books, which includes female characters, are aimed at young people aged 12 to 16 and aimed to introduce them to the world of digital innovation and technology.
  • Future Innovators Summer School (organised by MDIA together with the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology – MCAST): The programme ran from 10th July to 7th September 2023 and was designed to help teens aged 13 to 15 develop skills in artificial intelligence and digital innovation.
  • Girls4STEM Summer Camp (organised by the Science Centre, Pembroke together with the University of Malta – UM): The Summer Camp, which took place from 28th August to 1st September 2023, sought to promote STEM engagement, among female students aged 11-12 years. It aimed to eliminate gender disparity in STEM education and is aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 4, that seeks to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and to promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
  • ‘Xploring Intelligence Bootcamp – A Bootcamp on Us and Tech’ (organised by MDIA and the Faculty of Information & Communication Technology, UM): The camp that was held from 11th – 15th September 2023, focused on assisting young minds in providing creative abilities in artificial intelligence and digital innovation.
  • Short videos on ‘breaking gender stereotypes’ in STEM (produced by UM with support of the Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs and Trade): These were shown during the Science in the City, national science and arts festival from 29th – 30th September 2023 and are available on YouTube. A number of women with different backgrounds and careers who prepared an interactive activity based on their areas of expertise were also manning the stand.
  • DigiNova camp (organised by MDIA, in collaboration with the Malta Innovation Forum – MIF- and Esplora): The camp that took place between October and November 2023, was designed to help students in Year 9 to Year 11 develop skills in creativity, innovation, and emerging digital technologies, particularly artificial intelligence.
  • “She Can…” Exhibition (organised by UM): The idea behind “She Can…” is to promote role models in our society and encourage a more equitable workforce in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) fields. It featured twenty-six females from various scientific thematic areas, namely: Digital Technologies; Sustainability and Smart Solutions; Marine and Maritime; and Health and Well-being. The “She Can…” exhibition was officially launched at the House of Representatives[1], Valletta, on Thursday, 15th February 2024 and has toured a number of secondary schools.
  • Closing event: A closing event of the World Capital of Women and Girls in Science initiative was held at the University of Malta (Valletta Campus) in Valletta on Thursday 29th February 2024. The event featured a presentation of Activities and Initiatives on the World Capital year of Women and Girls in Science 2023-2024, followed by a Panel Discussion. The latter brought together various stakeholders to discuss the need for gender balance in STEM as well as family-friendly measures linked to career progression in STEM. Three awards were also presented by RASIT during the event, namely: the RASIT School of Excellence Recognition Award to St Ignatius College, the RASIT Organization of Excellence Recognition Award to HSBC (Malta) Foundation the HRH Prince Mohammad bin King Faisal (I) El-Hashemite’s Royal Medal RASIT to Prof. Pauline Galea.

Kindly find the full report with more details on the various initiatives.

Following the Capital year initiative, an exhibition featuring a collection of portraits from the “She Can…” Exhibition, organised by UM, in honour of International Women’s Day, was inaugurated in Shanghai on 6th March 2024. The opening ceremony was attended by Consuls General and distinguished members of the international community residing in Shanghai, including Malta’s Consul General Ms Lisa Azzopardi.

For more information, kindly see the following:

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