Albania
The Government of Albania, with support from UNDP and the Italian Government launched the Innovation against Corruption: Building a Citizen Centric Service Delivery, which promotes greater engagement of women in the design, development, and production of the solutions.
Armenia
Impact Accelerator #5 in Armenia focuses on providing business and technical skills to girls and women to help develop their own start-ups. The program connects young women and girls to Armenia’s IT/Tech ecosystem who advises on job search and education; teaches new tech skills; and exposes them to new financing sources. Under MPTF funding and jointly with UNICEF, it targets girls (7-14 years of age).
Belarus
In 2021, UNDP has equipped women-led SMEs (133 women participated in real-time online sessions and 386 women viewed the recording) with knowledge and skills to efficiently and adequately mainstream digital tools and innovations into business models to increase business turnover. UNDP Guidelines on SMEs Digitalization were promoted among women entrepreneurs (748 views and 208 downloads) to support the digital transformation of their businesses. 240 women are enrolled in an online course on freelance developed by NGO Pro women with UNDPs support to ensure women’s access to sustainable livelihood under crisis circumstances. 257 women participated in real-time online sessions and 771 women viewed the recording of the Business and Career Days for women where experts and women participants explored new ways to increase resilience of business, develop recovery strategy, accelerate digital transformation of business, keep up with labour market trends and enter new careers in STEM sectors.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
The UNDP Economic Governance for Growth Project in Bosnia and Herzegovina, financed by the Government of Norway and UNICEF, is establishing STEM academies through piloted entrepreneurship curricula and fabrication labs in selected primary and secondary schools, thus supporting entrepreneurship development. In addition, the ‘IT Girls’ initiative, with support from UNICEF, UNDP and UN Women, fosters girls’ education in STEM fields, through computer programming, digital communications and website development programmes.
Kazakhstan
UNDP Kazakhstan Accelerator Lab conducted a STEM bootcamp targeting about 100 young women aged 18to 25 from Zhezkazgan and Satpayev single industry towns. During the two-week bootcamp, participants were taught hard and soft skills, such as the basics of programming, website creation, social media marketing, public speaking and graphic design. The highlight of the bootcamp was 12 final presentations in which participants brought practical skills and offered solutions to local problems. Participants addressed challenges such as gender-based violence, animal cruelty, green jobs for people with disabilities, English language learning among youth, and promoting educational content in Kazakh. As a result, the bootcamp increased the appeal of digital fields and opened up new opportunities and positive life scenarios for young women. UNDP is supporting STEM education in the regions of Kazakhstan | UNDP in Kazakhstan
Turkey
The Engineer Girls of Turkey project developed by UNDP and Limak Holding supported schoolgirls who receive engineering education with scholarships and opportunities to interact with women role models.
Central Asia
The Girls Technovation initiative supports girls in their path to become tech professionals and entrepreneurs in many countries across the ECA region. With support from UNDP, it is providing IT online training sessions to mentors in Uzbekistan during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Kyrgyzstan, the Technovation Coding Caravan, with support from the UN Women Kyrgyzstan Country Office and the US Embassy in the Kyrgyz Republic, has helped rural girls learn programming basics.
Western Balkans
As part of its campaign WE (Women Empowerment), the Regional Cooperation Council, with UNDP's support, is sharing successful stories of women in STEM in the Western Balkans.
