A lecturer at the Cape Coast Technical University (CCTU) who is also a Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) advocate, Rejoice Ntiriwaa Ossei-Bremang is calling on stakeholders to sensitize females on the need to opt for professions in the engineering field.

She contends that over the years, engineering has been seen as a preserve of males, and females who are into it are at times stereotyped.

In a bid to change the narrative and encourage females to begin developing interest in engineering at the pre-tertiary level, the lecturer who is also a PhD candidate at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has begun a campaign to urge young girls at second cycle institutions to be enlightened on the importance of choosing engineering courses.

Speaking to students of the Wioso Senior High School in the Ashanti Region during world engineering day, Rejoice Ntiriwaa Ossei-Bremang who is also an engineer wondered if the students have paid attention to things around them and have even realised that a lot of things about women are engineering-related which should not be deemed as too technical or complicated for them.


“Almost everything about a woman is engineering, yet most of our young girls are not ready to consider engineering as an option at the pre-tertiary stages because of the stereotypes associated with the engineering field.”

“Intrigued or fascinated about how your gas (cooking fuel) or cookstove burns the way it does?
Ask the energy engineers, agricultural engineers, and biosystems engineers (Bioenergy). Clean cooking, climate change mitigation, and ecosystem restoration are serious indicators for us. Also, have you ever wondered about the chemical composition of your beauty products? Ask the chemical engineers and the cosmetic engineers. Make-up and hygiene products offer a rich set of problems for engineers.”

She then cited a number of examples for the students to further understand how engineering is very much relatable to women and should not be seen as complicated.

“Have you wondered how perishable foods are preserved for long term use? Both canned and frozen foods?
Ask the post-harvest engineers (Agricultural Engineer). They care about food security. Do you love to be seen in different textures of fabrics? Ask your textile engineers and industrial engineers.”

“Oh! Do you know how your wrist watches and other adorning accessories were glamorously made? Well! Ask the materials engineers, metallurgical engineers and mechanical engineers. Last but not least, wondering how you are able to charge and use your phone to access the internet, browse, trade, and enjoy social media? Then say a big thank you to the telecommunications engineers, network engineers and electrical engineers”.

As an ambassador for the one million girls in STEM initiative, which is aimed at a 10-year global campaign under the auspices of WomEng, Rejoice believes that a conscious effort by major stakeholders within Ghana’s education space will significantly improve the country’s strides in the area.

Why Wioso Senior High School?

According to Rejoice Ntiriwaa Ossei-Bremang, Wioso Senior High School resonates very well with the future of work and STEM coupled with the fact that she was the first female Project Manager of the school and as a result, went to give back to the institution by empowering students to get themselves ready for the future of work. She says the ethos of the school aligns well with almost all the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG7.

“The main source of energy for the school is solar which powers all the structures in the school including their irrigation system on the school farm. They are already promoting engineering education subtly and they only need a boost from an expert to set the tone for their students, and I am excited to do that”.