In a bid to close the gender gap in aviation and aerospace careers, the Young Aerospace Professionals Initiative (YAPI) marked this year’s Girls in Aviation Day with an engaging session at Prudence City College, Yaba, under its Project AeroGirls initiative; an outreach designed to introduce young girls to careers and opportunities across the aviation and aerospace sector at a stage when many are still forming ideas about their future.
The event was powered by a number of key partners, including AnCore ARSP, Aura Assurance and the Verb Aircraft Maintenance Engineers Club (VAMEC), and it exposed students to career paths in the industry beyond the cockpit, from engineering and policy to technical operations.
Founder and Executive Director of YAPI, Aanuoluwapo Ojewunmi, led a session on different aerospace careers, walking students through the academic pathways required to pursue them.
Speaking on why YAPI designed the programme around secondary school girls, she explained that this is the stage when young people begin forming ideas about their future careers. She noted that women make up only a tiny fraction of aircraft maintenance engineers globally, and this added some urgency behind the initiative.
“We believe we need to start earlier by showing girls that careers in aviation and aerospace are not only possible, but that they have a place in shaping the industry,” she said, adding that Project AeroGirls was conceived specifically to tackle the lack of early exposure to opportunities in the field, particularly for girls who may never otherwise encounter role models in the industry.
Programme Associate for Policy and Advocacy at the African Space Leadership Institute (ASLI), Oluwarantimi Bukola, pointed to mentorship and professional networks as one of the biggest structural gaps facing young women in the industry: “We need stronger connections between schools, industry and female professionals so that girls can see a clear path from interest to education, experience and eventually a career in aerospace.
Project AeroGirls is working to bridge this gap by connecting university and early-career women with mentorship, industry exposure and professional development opportunities.”
The Principal of Prudence City College, Yaba, Mr Akinwoye Akinsola Sunday, commended the organisers for hosting the programme at the school, noting that it equipped students with valuable knowledge and practical exposure to the aerospace and aviation industry: “We truly appreciate the organisers for empowering the next generation of girls in aerospace and look forward to having more programmes here at the College.”
The day also featured a virtual UAV informational session delivered by Engr. Foluwaso Farombi, giving students a closer look into drone technology and its growing relevance across the aviation and aerospace industry, an area that also drew strong interest from the boys in attendance. The event was coordinated by members of the YAPI team, including Programmes Lead, Marvellous Adegbaju, and Events and Content Support Lead, Blossom Oton.
With Project AeroGirls, YAPI continues to build a pipeline of young women positioned to take up space in an industry where they remain significantly underrepresented; one classroom session at a time.
