On Thursday 13th November, the Mawazo Institute joined the Schlumberger Foundation in launching their latest Faculty for the Future Impact Survey and co-hosting a breakfast meeting. Their report’s insights complement our own Status of African Women in Research report, presented at the event by CEO Dr. Fiona Wanjiku Moejes, and together they tell an exciting story about the changing landscape of women in research – and what’s next.
Schlumberger’s 2025 report, presented by Schlumberger Foundation President and Director Capella Festa, on Women from Emerging Economies in STEM offered a unique opportunity for us to bring together 15 representatives from our two Fellowships, as well as key individuals from industry and the higher education and research ecosystem. Mawazo’s Director of Finance Elizabeth Ngala expertly guided us through the programme’s agenda as the Master of Ceremonies.
Tapping into the diverse, and experienced voices in the room, we discussed some of the emerging issues from the report, including how institutions can be of greater support to women in advancing their careers, the structural and systemic challenges for women researchers, and the gaps in institutionally supported mentorship. The small group break out sessions allowed all attendees to deep dive into problem solving, and lent nuanced understanding to the discussions.
Before concluding the event, Capella led a pertinent panel discussion with Dr. Aline Saraiva Okello and Dr. Peace Musonge, both Faculty for the Future Fellows, and Dr. Johra Ali, a 2023 Mawazo Fellow. All three women are not only advancing their own fields with their work, but are also staunch advocates for improving the academic and research ecosystems for women.
Dr. Peace spoke from her positive experience in including a gender lens in how research is conducted, and especially how data is collected. Dr. Aline emphasised the significance of women hearing other women speak about their careers and experiences in the workplace. To answer a growing need for more visibility from women in STEM, she started a series called “Career Chats” that has a growing audience of young women researchers. Finally Dr. Johra highlighted the mentorship programme that she and six other Mawazo alumni launched in 2025, with the support of Mawazo’s Communities of Practice funding.
Although a fundamental question going into the Breakfast was “What next?”, it became clear as the agenda progressed that there are many women who are already involved and doing their part to improve the experiences of the next generation of women scientists. Our role in the Mawazo community is to continue to support their initiatives, platform their ideas, and encourage more spaces of connection.
See moments from the event here.
