The program, funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York ( CCNY) and implemented by African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD), seeks to build a pool of capable, confident, influential young women scientists equipped to excel in agricultural sciences, thrive in leadership roles, and champion gender integration in agriculture.
The competitively selected successful applicants will benefit from a range of opportunities to strengthen their leadership skills, enhance their capacities to effectively communicate their work to diverse audiences, and amplify their visibility and networking skills. The program is envisaged to equip them to overcome institutionalized barriers to women’s career progression and motivate them to stay in agricultural science careers. It will increase their awareness of the importance of gender integration in agriculture sciences and the need to champion gender equality in agriculture professions.
Launched in 2020, the AWARD Leadership Program for Emerging African Women in Science draws participants from diverse biophysical and social science agriculture disciplines and organizations, including government agencies, non-governmental organizations, academia, research organizations, the private sector, and more. To date, the program has reached 75 young women in science from 21 African countries.