Namibia is an example of the fact that the work of gender is never done. In 2021, Namibia was announced as a leading advocate for gender equality in Africa (Global Gender Gap https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-gender-gap-report-2021/ ); however, despite this, gender equality, inclusivity, and intersectionality (GEII) in research grants is a challenge. As one of 13 African councils participating in the GEI project, Namibia wants to realise its commitment to fostering GEII across all sectors. 

Senior Programme Officer at the National Commission on Research, Science, and Technology (NCRST), Oswald Siku Mughongora, tells the story of a young woman at university who has aspirations to be a world-renowned innovator or researcher. However, most of these women have grown up isolated from necessary information and lack the resources to kickstart their careers. 

This project aims to ensure that no one is geographically or socially excluded, and they’re using an evidence-based approach to ensure that their findings are robust. Through a GEII perception survey disseminated among key stakeholders, they will identify gaps, challenges, and opportunities in grant management. This will help them to develop capacity-building programmes, training programmes, workshops, mentorships, etc., to improve GEII understanding and implementation. 

Namibia aims to be a knowledge-based society, and Mughongora inspires us to look to the future by imagining what will happen if we don’t create equal opportunities. He further asserts that if we don’t nurture skills through equal opportunities, we will lose valuable research and insights, and it’s imperative to advance knowledge and create systems where individuals can thrive. 

The NCRST is working with policymakers and stakeholders to ensure understanding and assimilation of GEII to attain a critical mass towards being Gender Transformative by 2030. 

To find out more, click here. 

Funding for implementing GEII activities was provided by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) and the National Research Foundation, South Africa.