Cameroon - Startup under 3 years old

Describe your project or startup in a few words

Les GO Sciencent is an initiative based in Cameroon which aims to promote girls and women participation in STEM careers to contribute to our country development

01.01 Describe your startup in more detail

According to Research Gate, Cameroun had less than 20% of women graduates in STEM in 2017 and the trend has not changed much in recent years. We thrive to change those statistics by breaking stereotypes in sharing stories of women role models in STEM to inspire and break barriers. We organize workshops/ training to equip girls and women in STEM. Also, we have a running mentoring program to guide those women to excel in STEM. We have an ongoing program of virtual STEM clubs with 14 active clubs. Finally we share opportunities so that those women could enter the job market in STEM and positively impact our communities. It’s an innovation in Cameroon because it combines skills training in STEM, leadership and entrepreneurship. It’s a unique opportunity to raise more women leaders in STEM that will be equipped to contribute to solve the different challenges of our country.

01.02 What is the main problem you are trying to solve?

According to Research Gate, Cameroun had less than 20% of women graduates in STEM in 2017 and the trend has not changed much in recent years. The under-representation of women in STEM is a problem we want to solve. According to many experts, the likely reasons for these statistics are as follows: 1- Stereotypes 2- The lack of female role models in STEM 3- Unconscious bias 4- The imbalance of work-life balance

01.03 Tell us the major benefits and/or advantages of using the product/service that your startup provides (at least 3).

1- Reduction of the gender gap in STEM by introducing girls to STEM topics from a young age and fostering their motivation to study math and science; by vulgarizing female role models in STEM to inspire the next generation to dream big. 
2- Quality education of women through workshops/ training and university grants in STEM fields. In fact, STEM education will empower women to pursue varied interests, move into any industry with valuable skill sets and become a confident problem solver in any area of life. 
3- Promote a diverse STEM workforce with different perspectives that can provide unique solutions (through education, mentoring and support) to problems, increasing the quality of research and innovation. Our initiative leads to more jobs and helps the economy to grow.

01.04 Please describe who exactly your startup’s product/service is aimed at serving. Who are the targeted beneficiaries?

Girls : teaching STEM at a young age can help encourage more girls to pursue a career in STEM. While they might not be planning their futures in elementary or middle school, introducing them to various subjects when they are younger can instil a lifelong interest and passion in subjects, encouraging them to seek degrees and jobs in that field.
Women : inspiring women to pursue — and thrive in — STEM careers helps narrow the gender equal opportunity gap, enhances women’s economic independency and security, ensures a diverse and talented STEM workforce and prevents biases in these fields and the products and services they produce.
Parents/ teachers or educators : Teachers play a critical role in promoting curiosity, critical thinking, and problem solving. We work along with them in order to equip them with the most effective way to grow interest in STEM, especially when dealing with girls/ women.

01.05 When was your company established?

2023-03-13

01.06 Are you already selling your product/service?

Yes

01.07 How many other owners are there within your startup?

1

01.08 Among the other owners, how many are female?

1

01.09 Please describe the profile of the other owners within your startup (skills, experience, etc.)

Marie Fortunata Lekaboth - notary clerk and legal assistant in charge of all the administrative matters.

01.10 If you have a website, a social media page (Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin…), or app, please provide the link(s) here:

https://www.lesgosciencent.com/ ; https://www.facebook.com/legoutdelascience?mibextid=LQQJ4d ; https://www.linkedin.com/company/les-go-sciencent/

01.11 Which industry best describes your project?

i) Communication services (telecommunications, media, interactive services)

02.01.01 My startup contributes to the No poverty goal

5

02.01.02 No poverty - Justification for my startup

Women that are trained in STEM are likely to find a modest job and cover the needs of their respective families.

02.02.01 My startup contributes to the Zero hunger goal

4

02.02.02 Zero hunger - Justification for my startup

02.03.01 My startup contributes to the Good health and well-being goal

4

02.03.02 Good health and well-being - Justification for my startup

02.04.01 My startup contributes to the Quality education goal

6

02.04.02 Quality education - Justification for my startup

We promote STEM education for women, therefore we participate to a quality education for women.

02.05.01 My startup contributes to the Gender equality goal

7 - Strongly Agree

02.05.02 Gender equality - Justification for my startup

Empowering women in STEM greatly contributes to close the gender gap in STEM.

02.06.01 My startup contributes to the Clean water and sanitation goal

3

02.06.02 Clean water and sanitation - Justification for my startup

02.07.01 My startup contributes to the Affordable and clean energy goal

3

02.07.02 Affordable and clean energy - Justification for my startup

02.08.01 My startup contributes to the Decent work and economic growth

7 - Strongly Agree

02.08.02 Decent work and economic growth - Justification for my startup

Empowering women in STEM contributes to release qualified women workforce and it will have an impact on the economic growth of the country.

02.09.01 My startup contributes to the Industry innovation and infrastructure

4

02.09.02 Industry innovation and infrastructure - Justification for my startup

02.10.01 My startup contributes to the Reduced inequalities goal

6

02.10.02 Reduced inequalities - Justification for my startup

Empowering women in STEM greatly contributes to break women stereotypes in STEM and therefore reduce inequality.

02.11.01 My startup contributes to the Sustainable cities and communities goal

4

02.11.02 Sustainable cities and communities - Justification for my startup

02.12.01 My startup contributes to the Responsible consumption and production goal

3

02.12.02 Responsible consumption and production - Justification for my startup

02.13.01 My startup contributes to the Climate action goal

3

02.13.02 Climate action - Justification for my startup

02.14.01 My startup contributes to the Life below water goal

2

02.14.02 Life below water - Justification for my startup

02.15.01 My startup contributes to the Life on land goal

2

02.15.02 Life on land - Justification for my startup

02.16.01 My startup contributes to the Peace Justice and Strong Institutions goal

3

02.16.02 Peace Justice and Strong Institutions- Justification for my startup

02.17.01 My startup contributes to the Partnerships for the goal

4

02.17.02 Partnerships for the goal - Justification for my startup

06.01 There are a large number of customers who already use a product/service very similar to the product/service we envision creating.

4

06.02 The product/service represents an entirely new type of product/service.

6

06.03 The product/service could be described as a new technology.

4

06.04 The product/service is an improvement on an existing product or service.

4

06.05 The product/service could be described as an extension of a range of products or services.

4

06.06 The product/service responds to a demand or need that has not been satisfied by other products/services.

7 - Strongly Agree

06.07 The product/service is a new version of an old product/service.

4

06.08 Justification for my startup

We are an innovative, I do not know any other association in Cameroon that works exclusively with women to encourage them to pursue Stem careers.

06.09 Competitive Analysis

They are many organizations doing the same project as mine in Cameroon, for example CAYSTI . We are fundamentally different in two ways: firstly, one of our goals is to reduce gender gap in STEM; therefore, we work specifically with girls/ women. And secondly, we put mentorship at the core of our activities because we believe that it’s fundamental to success. In my community, they find activities at CAYSTI very interesting and they are opened to participate but they are loyal to LES GO SCIENCENT because our mentoring program is unique and our approach to gather women around a unique purpose makes everything different; they feel empowered to be among female role models in STEM that are available to help them. The fact that women are central to our project and that we have a mentoring program only for them is something that we also highlight through our activities and social media content. We take advantage of all the available opportunities to communicate that peculiarity.

11.05 Are you initiating actions within your community to promote the role of female entrepreneurs?

Yes. The initiative LES GO SCIENCENT itself is an example.