In 2023, there were 7.7 million female scientists and engineers in the EU, 381 200 more than in 2022.
Women represented 41.0% of the scientists and engineers workforce. This share was higher in services related activities at 45.6%. In manufacturing, women represented 22.4% of scientists and engineers, while in other activities that share was 23.9%.
Among the EU countries, the proportion of female scientists and engineers varied widely in 2023, with the highest shares registered in Denmark (50.8%), Spain (50.0 %,) Bulgaria (49.1%), and Latvia and Ireland (each 49%).
The lowest representation of female scientists and engineers was in Hungary (30.7%), followed by Finland (31.4%), Italy (34.1%), and Slovakia and Malta (each 34.3%).
Source dataset: hrst_st_rsex
Representing 33.3 per cent of all researchers worldwide, only 12 per cent of member of national science academies are women, while only 22 per cent of the labour force in artificial intelligence is currently composed of women, according to UNESCO.
Moreover, the 2024 Global Gender Gap Report highlighted that women’s representation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) is only at 28.2 per cent, while women make up one-tenth of leaders in the STEM workforce.
The celebrations at UNESCO Headquarters will include the screening of a documentary “Women of Science: These women who change our lives”, directed by Safia Kessas and produced by Iota Production, with the support of the Radio Télévision Belge Francophone (RTBF), the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), and the Wallonia-Brussels Federation to UNESCO.
Through the journeys of six women scientists from across Europe, it highlights their contributions and the challenges they have overcome along the way, offering an inspiring look at the impact of women in science.
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