October 2022 - May 2023
In October 2022, eight projects were awarded as part of Phase 4. Each project duration is six months. The aim is to support new pilot initiatives or communicate, disseminate and exploit impacts from successful projects from the pilot, Phase 2 and Phase 3 cohorts.
See below for a brief overview of each project.
Association of Professional
Women Engineers of Nigeria (APWEN) - SheEngineer 30% Club
Project location: Nigeria
This project aims to strengthen APWEN's internal capacity to tackle gender inequality in the engineering sector; expand the organisation's influence at the local, state, and national levels; help to build up an engineering talent pipeline with the necessary skills to respond to local challenges; and expand and give more visibility and awareness to the lessons and impact made as part of the APWEN's Africa Catalyst Phase 3 project 'SheEngineer - INVENT BUILD IT'.
The project will first tackle the aviation, automotive and renewable energy sectors where there is a noticeable shortage of female talents. It is necessary to open more job opportunities for women and engage employers to retain and support talented women, as well as promote a positive workplace through equality and diversity training, and provide support for the adoption and implementation of gender inclusion policies. SheEngineer 30% Club seeks to achieve engineering business transformation through people, understanding that gender balanced teams lead to better business success. The 30% target aims to set a direction of propulsion so that progress can be smartly monitored and measured.
The “SheEngineer 30% Club” will be implemented through a four-phase strategy:
- Reach Out - To attract more women
- Welcome In - To remove bias in recruitment
- Pull Through - To pull women through the promotional pipeline
- Hold On - To retain talented women
Federation of African Engineering
Organisations (FAEO) - Catching them young through Sibo the Engineer
Project location: Zimbabwe
The project seeks to bridge the ethnic, socio-economic and gender gap in STEM fields through the creation of inclusive and diversified STEM education content. 'Sibo the Engineer' children’s book will enhance 8-12 year old schoolchildren's knowledge and perceptions around STEM subjects and influence more girls to choose engineering as a career path.
A book focused on civil engineering has been published and is ready to be rolled out across the country. An animated series based on the book will be created, to be broadcast on local and international television channels. Two other STEM-themed children’s books will be developed during this project. Both the books and the animated series will be distributed across primary schools in Zimbabwe.
Ghana Institution of Engineering (GhIE) - Development of a framework for the establishment of a West African Engineering Professional Harmonisation and Accreditation Council (WAEPHAC)
Project location: Ghana
This project builds on the activities of the Sierra Leone Institution of Engineers (SLIE) project as part of the Africa Catalyst Phase 3 call. The team, in partnership with Engineers for Change Sierra Leone, Imperial College London and the World Federation of Engineering Organisations (WFEO), created a framework for harmonising engineering education and professional training in West Africa.
This project will be delivered in four parts:
- Part 1 - Conducting in-depth reviews of country membership systems across the ECOWAS region
- Part 2 - Document the various processes of international engineering professional bodies towards membership
- Part 3 - Establishing a benchmark Minimum Academic and Professional Standards (BMAPS) for sub regional (West African) recognition.
- Part 4 - Development of a dossier for the establishment of the West African Engineering Professional Harmonisation and Accreditation Council – WAEPHAC and pursuing its physical
actualisation
Institution of Engineers Rwanda (IER) - Elevating the Eco-system of Engineering Sector in Rwanda
Project location: Rwanda
As a result of IER's previous participation in the Africa Catalyst Phase 3 call, the institution has adopted a diversity and inclusion policy to enhance female participation in the industry. To continue supporting women engineers, the project plans to analyse the challenges faced by women in the sector and increase awareness. The project aims to empower women engineers through the development of a professional engineering institution that can effectively promote professionalism and increase women's representation in the engineering sector.
Through advocacy and public outreach initiatives, the projects aims to enhance the promotion of diversity and inclusion within the Institution of Engineers Rwanda. It will seek to understand the current situation of women in the engineering sector, reflect on the available opportunities and the challenges likely to be encountered, as well as ways to overcome them. The creation and dissemination of early career STEM guidance will also be rolled out through secondary schools, along with an Engineering Week to inspire young girls to get involved in STEM as a career path.
South Africa Road Federation (SARF) - Upskilling Female Civil Engineers in local South African Municipalities
Project location: South Africa
In order to provide female Municipal Engineers with the necessary skills to make better engineering decisions and add value to their day to day running of their section in their respective municipalities, SARF plans to train 75 female engineers from the 8 largest municipalities in South Africa.
Steps of the project include:
- SARF will approach the relevant municipal Senior Engineers and Human Resource/Training Managers to identify female engineers in their relevant municipalities who haven't been exposed to CPD accredited technical training course and who require CPD accredited course attendance to secure their professional registration with the Engineering Council of South Africa.
- SARF will compile a list of the 75 female Engineers from 8 South African municipalities to be part of this four-course training programme.
- Each training course class will invite 25 female engineers to review and discuss Engineering concepts
Sierra Leone Institution of Engineers (SLIE) - Accredited Standards and Pathways for Professional Engineers (Sierra Leone)
Project location: Sierra Leone
This project aims to pilot a process and a pathway for standardising the accreditation process for professional engineers in Sierra Leone and the West African region. IPD processes were developed as part of the CPD portal developed during Africa Catalyst Phase 2. This project takes the IPD initiative to the next stage by making it a part of the participating companies' corporate policies and programmes. The project will engage with the West African Federation of Engineers Organisations (WAFEO) on how the outcomes from the Pilot Project could support process towards harmonization across the region.
The project has three parts:
- Part 1 - Working to define an accreditation pathway for new and experienced professionals that meets international engineering standards
- Part 2 - Validating the mentor support training scheme as an accredited option to the Employer’s Approved Training Scheme. Ensuring competency requirements are met before integrating the professional development proposals
- Part 3 - Designing information systems to manage records and quality assurance data
Uganda Institution of
Professional Engineers (UIPE) - Strengthening Institutional Capacity to enhance Professional Development of Engineers in Uganda (SICEPDE)
Project location: Uganda
This project seeks to reach out to marginalised groups - specifically local government engineers, technologists and technicians by equipping them with skills and knowledge that will improve their work performance. In addition, the project will also carry out professional development and growth through an Initial Professional Development training targeting final year engineering students in selected universities from different regions in Uganda.
Uganda Institution of
Professional Engineers (UIPE) - Promotion and Strengthening of Diversity and Inclusion Activities within UIPE (Uganda)
Project location: Uganda
The overall aim of this project is to promote and strengthen diversity and inclusion activities within UIPE with a particular focus on the Women Engineers, Technicians and Technologist (WETT) Committee activities. The overall objective is to support UIPE in promoting D&I issues within the Institution. This is in line with the Africa Catalyst objectives of diversity & inclusion and supporting capacity building activities that create strong professional engineering bodies.