About the event devoted to the completion of the second stage of the mentoring program of the "Girls in Science" project

On April 23, 2022, an event devoted to the end of the second stage of the mentoring program of the "Girls in Science" project, took place in the ethno-complex "Supara".

The final meeting with mentors was attended by Roza Otunbayeva, former President of the Kyrgyz Republic and founder of the Roza Otunbayeva Initiative; Minister of Education and Science of the Kyrgyz Republic; Almazbek Beishenaliev, UNICEF Representative in Kyrgyzstan; Christine Jaulmes, Head of the Education Department of Bishkek Nazgul Losnikova; and partners, experts and invited guests.

The moderator of the event, executive director of the Foundation, Dogdurgul Kendirbaeva, opened the event with a reading of the work, "Girls in Science" by Berdibek Jamgyrchiev, a laureate of the Alykul Osmonov Literary Prize.

The event summed up the results of the second phase of the UNICEF “Girls in Science” mentoring program.

In her speech, former President Roza Otunbayeva, noted that the goal of the project was to attract the attention of schoolgirls to the exact sciences. "Girls in the future are better to choose such spheres as energy, mining, and the IT industry. We must not forget that there is a shortage of professionals in this field, and the economy of the country will develop in these areas. I am going to urge you to do this today. We need to support mentoring in Kyrgyzstan. We need to develop this practice. Half of our population is female, and we have the intelligence and experience to guide teenage girls," she said.

The “Girls in Science” project works closely with the Kyrgyz Ministry of Education and Science.  The Minister of Education and Science of the Kyrgyz Republic, Almazbek Beishenaliev, thanked the Rosa Otunbayeva Initiative International Foundation for its work in education and noted the contribution of international organizations to the development of our society."

The world is developing very fast. Today 54% of the people in the world speak English, and now it is vitally necessary to teach children English. Now the development of the country, industry, production all depends on the exact sciences. Our public policy was developed to include and encourage a STEM network. We increased the salaries of teachers of chemistry, biology, mathematics and computer science by 20%," Almazbek Beishenaliyev said.

The "Girls in Science" mentoring program included 160 women with successful and professional backgrounds in Kyrgyzstan, particularly in the fields of technology, science and creative industries. Each mentor was assigned to a group of girls in grades 7-10 from schools in Bishkek city, Osh and Chui regions. In five months 160 mentors worked with 1,326 mentees.

In her speech, Kristin Jaulmes, UNICEF Representative in Kyrgyzstan, thanked the mentors and partners who implemented the project.

"Thank you for spending time with the girls and sharing your knowledge and life experiences during these five months. Most importantly, you were able to guide the girls in their career choices, and you did a great job being  a moral compass for these girls. You have boosted your students' confidence, guided their dreams for the future, and shown that it is possible", said Christine Jaulmes.

During the event, UNICEF Gender Specialist, Jypar Turmamatova, gave a presentation titled: "Girls Conquer the Sky", and Roza Kayykova, the project coordinator, in her presentation, "The Mentor Road is Long", provided broad information about the project, project partners, project goals and results of the mentoring program. The mentor said that since the beginning of the project, 193 mentors and 2,140 mentees have been working for 5 months to help mentees find their way in an ever-changing world. The mentees' sentiments varied. In spite of this, they expressed gratitude on behalf of the project team they became friends and psychologists, and worked in different ways with teenagers.

Mentors Kutnayeva Nuriya and Artykova Jyldyz shared their successful experience. Sovaliyeva Saule, a 10th grade schoolgirl, and Baimova Altynai, a 9th grade schoolgirl, enthusiastically shared their successes. The girls thanked their mentors Kutnayeva Nuriya and Venera Kojomkulova for their successes.

Musical accompaniment enriched the course of the event. The founder of the Presidential Chamber Orchestra, "Manas", the artistic director and conductor, and People's Artist of the Kyrgyz Republic, Ernis Asanaliev; honored artist of the Kyrgyz Republic, soloist of the Kyrgyz National Theater of Opera and Ballet named after A. Maldybaev Tilek Naimanbaev; melodist-performer, candidate of philological sciences, director of the Bishkek Music and Pedagogical College Koldoshov; and Meerim Karypova created a good mood for the participants

By the end of 2022, 2,600 high school girls from pilot schools will be involved in the “Girls in Science” Project mentoring program. The main goal of the mentorship program is to create an environment in order for girls to better understand the benefits, importance, relevance, and future prospects of STEM education.