UoM’s commitment to advancing gender equity and equality

As a higher education institution, the University of Mauritius recognises its role in advancing gender equity and equality and supporting women academics in research and promote gender equality in academia through University outreach and collaborations in line with the Times Higher Education (THE)'s SDG 5.

Further to an initiative undertaken by a team of Faculty members, the UoM has been awarded the ACU Gender Grant 2023-2024 for a project entitled “Support Women Academics at the University of Mauritius – Moving from STEM to STEAM and SHAPE” in 2025. Following this award, a Research Capacity Building Workshop entitled "Supporting Women Academics/ Researchers at UoM" in collaboration with the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and sponsored by the ACU Gender Grant 2023/2024 was eventually held on 14 and 15 January 2025.

On Day 1: 14 January 2025, the first presentation was led by Ms Annick Yeung, researcher at the UoM, who talked about "Empowering Women Academics: An Introduction to Qualitative Research and Mixed Methods while Dr. Noorjahan Teeluckdharry, another researcher at the UoM, conducted a session on "Building Analytical Competence: PLS-SEM Foundations for Women in Academia". 

On Day 2: 15 January 2025, Dr. Elena Nikolova, Associate Professor at Zayed University in the UAE, led an interactive session covering topics such as networking, the publishing process, high-impact journals, maximizing research impact, and strategies for securing grants and consultancies.

The aim of this workshop was to build the capacity of women academics at the UoM through focused sessions on enhancing research skills, publishing in high impact factor journals, networking, citations, engaging in consultancies and research grants and building expertise in writing and bidding for research funding and consultancies.

By investing in the research capacity and career advancement of women academics, the University of Mauritius can help encourage applications by Women in Underrepresented Subjects and thereby strengthen its position in the THE ranking, positioning itself as a leading institution committed to excellence, innovation and diversity in research.

The team of Faculty members comprises: 

• Dr Verena Tandrayen-Ragoobur from the Faculty of Social Sciences & Humanities
• Dr Sheereen Banon Fauzel from the Faculty of Law and Management and
• Dr Bibi Sumera Keenoo from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences

ACU Gender Grants are awarded annually to member universities to support a diverse range of initiatives that will boost gender equity and equality on campus, including supporting women in leadership, raising awareness of sexual harassment and developing anti-sexual harassment initiatives, and mainstreaming gender equity into the curriculum.

Source on website: https://uom.ac.mu/index.php/uom-achievements/451-uoms-commitment-to-advancing-gender-equity-and-equality  

Event posting on UoM Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19StMypTMq/

Encouraging women into STEM and digital fields (University outreach and collab)

To mark International Women's Day 2025, the University of Mauritius co-hosted, with the UN Country Team in Mauritius and the Ministry of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation, a Round Table in March 2025 on the future of gender equality for women in the science, technology and innovation (STI) sector in Mauritius.

The discussion led to a Policy Brief, published by the UN in July 2025, setting out challenges, opportunities and recommendations to increase women's and girls' participation in digital, ICT and STEM fields.

A Roundtable discussion was jointly organised by the Ministry of ICT, and the University of Mauritius in collaboration with the United Nations Country Team for Mauritius, in Réduit in the context of the International Women’s Day 2025, and revolved around the theme ‘The future of gender equality for women in digitalisation/ICT sector in Mauritius’.

In his address Minister Ramtohul underlined the comparatively low number of women working in the ICT industry, pointing out that women constitute only 25% of the global ICT workforce.

As per the findings of a survey carried out by the Mauritius Research and Innovation Council, there are 7,838 women in the ICT workforce against 8,324 men.

The Minister observed that gender parity and imbalance differ according to organisations, reassuring that his Ministry stands guided by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Welfare as regards the introduction of policies promoting gender balance in the local ICT sector.

“Gender equality must be at the forefront of digital transformation, and that ICT should be adopted in an equitable manner. By empowering women in the governance of digital and technology policies, we can ensure a more equitable society”, he said.

On that score, the Minister listed out key actions to be taken, namely; creating more inclusive educational pathways to ICT and accelerating policies, providing funding schemes for women entrepreneurs in ICT and catering for more incubators and mentoring facilities.

 “We are also ensuring close monitoring of gender responsive actions through a National Gender Monitoring Mechanism wherein the gender focal point of the ICT Ministry is represented and making sure gender is trickled down to all its projects and programmes in an equitable manner thereby reaching out to all girls and women”, she said.

For her part the United Nations Resident Coordinator for Mauritius and Seychelles, Ms Lisa Simrique Singh, stressed that in the current complex world where technology is pervading, the acquisition of IT skills and competencies is crucial. Lauding initiatives such as the roundtable discussion, she remarked that such events contribute to put women at the centre, paving the way for more integration, empowerment and resilience. She remained hopeful that the roundtable discussion will facilitate the implementation of concrete actions aligned with Government’s vision.

https://www.govmu.org/EN/newsgov/SitePages/Roundtable-discussion-focuses-on-gender-equality-in-digitalisation-ICT-sector.aspx

The UN International Day of Women and Girls in Science Workshop

In view of the United Nations International Day of Women and Girls in Science, celebrated on the 11th of February 2025, the UoM Computational Group organised an annual event to mark the “Global Women’s Breakfast Meeting and the International Day of Women and Girls in Science” on Wednesday 12 February 2025 by Prof Ramasami.

In order to engage the students for this event, they were required to give presentations based on the UN Sustainable Goals. They opted to present on Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being, Goal 13: Climate Action and Goal 14; Life below Water. 

This event was held under the umbrella of the UNESCO Chair in Computational Chemistry and it was supported by the Royal Society of Chemistry. 

It was also an opportunity to highlight the “International Year of Quantum Science and Technology”.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CxV1umKBc/

Launching Ceremony of “Empowering Women and Girls in STEM (EWGS)” initiative

 The University of Mauritius (UoM), through its Faculty of Science, hosted the launching ceremony of the Empowering Women and Girls in STEM (EWGS) initiative on 9 June 2025 at the University’s Réduit campus.

The initiative, funded under the SADC WISETO Programme through the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science and Research, aims to promote gender equity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) by inspiring and supporting women and girls through mentorship, education and engagement.

The initiative contributes to the University’s efforts to encourage greater participation by women in STEM disciplines, in which women are traditionally underrepresented. Through its outreach activities, the programme seeks to raise awareness of opportunities in STEM, challenge gender stereotypes and motivate girls and women to consider pursuing studies and careers in these fields.

The launch programme featured keynote addresses by two prominent female STEM leaders, as well as a panel discussion involving women professionals from academia, industry and civil society. By providing opportunities for participants to interact with and learn from established female professionals, the event highlighted women’s achievements in STEM and provided visible role models to inspire the next generation.

Furthermore, the initiative demonstrates the University’s engagement and collaboration with external stakeholders, including the SADC WISETO Programme and the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science and Research, in advancing gender equality and promoting women's participation in fields where they are underrepresented.

Through this initiative, the University of Mauritius supports efforts to encourage girls and women to consider applying for and pursuing programmes in STEM-related disciplines, thereby contributing to SDG 5: Gender Equality.