History

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Ikala STEM – Madagascar is an initiative launched in May 2016 by

Zara Randriamanakoto. This was in response to her aspiration

to contribute to the promotion of education and science in Madagascar

while pursuing her academic career in South Africa. She strongly believes

that living outside her home country should not be seen as an obstacle

to give back to her community.

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A few months later, Zara shared the project with her childhood friend

Hanitra Rakotonirina who lives in Germany. They discussed about which

strategies to adopt, in connecting and engaging Malagasy Women

scientists worldwide to work together in raising STEM education awareness, especially to the girls and young women in the country. Successive meetings were held between November 2016 and February 2017 in South Africa, Germany and Madagascar in preparation of the creation of the association and its board members.

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To date, the association has around 40 permanent members that are scattered in four different chapters, with regional nodes in Madagascar currently under development. More than 100 active volunteers joined the movement through the first cohort of  the flagship Fellowship program launched in November 2019. Ikala STEM is fully run by volunteers and support to fund the association activities and planned projects are still mainly covered by the contribution from members.

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Ikala STEM is still a work in progress but we are confident that with the commitment of our permanent members and your help and support, we will deliver more than we could ever hoped in “empowering the next generation of Malagasy Women in STEM”.

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Do you share the same vision? Become a member, a partner, or a donor.