Africa Leads The World In Female STEM Graduates, Yet Few Hold Top Tech Roles
Women make up 47% of STEM graduates in Africa, according to a recent McKinsey study —a higher share than in Europe (42%), Asia (41%), and South America (41%). Additionally, in sub-Saharan Africa, as much as 30% of roles in STEM sectors are held by women. However, less than 20% of top tech roles are held by women in Africa.
“Our research found that less than 20 percent of publicly listed companies in Africa with C-suite tech roles had a woman in that role,” the study’s authors wrote. “Furthermore, just 3% of companies with revenues that exceeded $1 billion had women in top tech leadership roles.”
Africa has the highest rate of female STEM graduates
Women and girls in Africa have achieved high educational success in STEM, thanks to initiatives like Africa Code Week, which has reached more than 17 million young people since 2015, with almost half of the participants in 2023 being girls.
Alami Capital, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently launched the LaunchPad at GITEX Nigeria 2025, a pioneering investment and venture-building platform designed to scale Africa’s most promising women-led startups.
Airtel Africa Foundation has announced the launch of its ‘Tech For Her’ Program, an initiative that equips young women across Zambia, Uganda, and Kenya with technical skills.
Global data highlights that Africa has a marginally higher representation of women in the STEM workplace than the worldwide average (30% versus 28%). But, less than 20% of publicly listed companies in Africa with C-suite tech roles had a woman in that role.
Africa also has a larger proportion of women entrepreneurs than any other region, with about 26% of businesses on the continent founded by women. This is more than double the share in Europe (12%) and considerably higher than in the Asia–Pacific region (16%).
However, only about 20% of tech startups in Africa have at least one woman co-founder, and about 10% have a woman CEO.
South Africa and Nigeria have the highest number of women in C-suite tech roles
South Africa and Nigeria emerged as leaders, boasting the most significant number of listed companies with women in C-suite tech roles.
In South Africa, 20 of 116 companies (17%) are led by women, while in Nigeria, the figure is 15 of 75 companies (20%). In contrast, Egypt (4%), Tanzania (9%), and Namibia (10%) recorded the lowest shares of women in leadership positions at women-led companies. Meanwhile, Botswana, Malawi, Seychelles, Sudan, and Uganda reported no women in such roles.
Image: ThisisEngineering
