Leila Benali Calls for a Collective Mobilization to Support Women’s Integration in Research and Innovation
The Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benali, emphasized that empowering women in scientific research and innovation has become a strategic necessity for the countries in the region, stressing that “Morocco needs all its resources, and we cannot afford to waste half of them.”
Her remarks came during the 19th edition of the awards ceremony for the “L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science” program, held on Monday at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Sale. She highlighted the current state of women’s participation in science and leadership. Benali explained that Moroccan investments in laboratories, clean technologies, and strategic minerals lose their significance if women are not fully included in the development process, as researchers, leaders, innovators, and decision-makers.
Benali addressed the deep-rooted biases that women face in senior positions, noting that they are continually required to prove their capabilities, despite their success in leading major national and international projects. She also highlighted the stereotype that pressures women to work twice as hard as men, while they are often willing to forgo some recognition of their achievements, stating that this reality “is not just a problem for women; it is a problem for humanity as a whole.”
The minister emphasized that enhancing women’s presence in the field of science necessitates a collective mobilization among governments, universities, the industrial sector, and international institutions, commending the L’Oréal-UNESCO program as a successful model of long-term cooperation to support young women researchers.
