Yielding Accomplished African Women (Yaa W) is changing the face of STEM in Africa

According to the World Bank, Ghana will be the fastest growing economy in the world in 2018. The information and communication technology (ICT) based jobs in Ghana, have already increased by 6.7% and are expected to grow exponentially.

At current rates, 15 to 20 million well-educated young people will enter into Africa’s labor force annually until 2030. But, on average African countries only capture 55% of their human capital, compared to the 65% global average. Moreover, there are even lower rates of female economic participation.

To tackle this issue, Diana Wilson, a young, ambitious and incredibly passionate first-generation Ghanaian-American woman created Yielding Accomplished African Women (Yaa W). Yaa W is named after and in the spirit of Yaa Asantewaa, a Ghanaian feminist heroine, Queen mother and warrior. Yielding Accomplished African Women is Ghana’s first finance and technology accelerator for women!

How It Works:
It is a yearlong program in which female college students complete an intensive educational course in finance/technology, leadership development, branding and professional etiquette. The Yaa W. program provides comprehensive certification courses, extensive online training software, and experience with hands-on social impact projects, constructed to ensure every participant masters the fundamental skills requisite for employment at top financial and technology corporations.

A speaker series consisting of internationally recognized Ghanaian female executives and entrepreneurs will spur hope and provide examples of success. Additionally, the mentorship program provides professional socialization and personal support.

The Need:
Yielding Accomplished African Women is making strides in solving this gendered global phenomenon. According to the McKinsey Global Institute, if women had the opportunity to participate in the economy equally to men, $28 trillion dollars in economy would be added to the global economy by 2025.

Because empowered women, empower their communities, 90% of $28 trillion dollars would be reinvested in health, nutrition, and education for families. This organization is unique because they work to simultaneously educate and empower college women to become agents of change in their communities.

Yielding Accomplished African Women stands out amongst the crowd because they focus on 1) college women, 2) socio-economic diversity of participants, 3) finance and technology and 4) utilize an interdisciplinary teaching approach. Their vision is necessary, significant and set for high levels of impact.

Yielding Accomplished African Women is based off of the Twi word Sankofa. Sankofa is a Ghanaian word that translates to “it is not taboo to fetch what is at risk of being left behind”. With the growth of this program, there won’t be any GIRL LEFT BEHIND.

How You Can Help:
Through the Our Girls, Our Future package, you can sponsor a Ghanaian female student to go through our entire 12-month program. You can donate through their website: http://accomplishedafricanwomen.org/. Also, you can help by providing experiential learning opportunities to Africa’s youth. Does your organization have internships, externships, competitions, networking events, etc.? Then email yaaw.234@gmail.com to solidify a partnership.