Ghanaian policy advocate Gabriel Nii Kommey Adams has called for greater investment in girls’ education, science and technology, and environmental innovation, arguing that Africa’s green future will depend on empowering young women to lead the continent’s climate and development transformation.
Speaking at the Environmental Education and Lifelong Learning Conference organised by the Pan African Centre for Climate Policy (PACCP) in Ghana, Mr. Adams said Africa could not build an inclusive green economy while excluding half of its population from science, engineering, technology and environmental leadership.
He urged governments, educational institutions, businesses and development partners to create opportunities for girls to develop practical skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and participate fully in climate action and green innovation.
“The future is green. The future is inclusive. The future is African,” he said, stressing that young girls across the continent should be equipped to become scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs and policymakers capable of addressing Africa’s environmental challenges.
Mr. Adams said Africa’s environmental pressures, including climate change, deforestation, land degradation, illegal mining, pollution, biodiversity loss and unpredictable weather, were already affecting livelihoods, agriculture and economic development across the continent.
He argued that these challenges should be viewed not only as threats but also as opportunities for innovation, particularly if young women are given access to quality education and technical training.
According to him, STEM education is essential for developing solutions in areas such as renewable energy, water purification, climate-smart agriculture, flood prediction, waste management and environmental monitoring. However, many African girls continue to face barriers including poverty, discrimination, cultural stereotypes and limited access to digital tools and mentorship.
He called for schools to become “living laboratories of sustainability” where students learn through practical environmental projects such as tree planting, recycling, water conservation and clean energy initiatives.
Mr. Adams also highlighted the importance of social innovation, describing it as the process of applying science and technology to solve community problems in affordable and sustainable ways. He cited examples including solar-powered irrigation systems, low-cost water quality sensors, digital weather information platforms and waste-to-wealth enterprises.
He urged governments to adopt gender-responsive STEM and climate education policies, expand scholarships and mentorship programmes for girls, and strengthen partnerships between schools, universities, industry and local communities.
Mr. Adams said Africa’s environmental and economic future would be shaped by the ability of its young people, particularly girls, to innovate and lead.
“If we educate a girl in STEM, we unlock her potential. If we empower her to innovate, we strengthen her community. If we give her the opportunity to lead, we transform our continent,” he said.
Mr. Adams said African girls must be recognised not merely as beneficiaries of development but as “principal architects” of the continent’s green transformation.
Addressing both the conference plenary and a panel discussion on “Empowering Girls for Africa’s Green Future: STEM, Innovation and Lifelong Learning,” he urged governments, educational institutions, industry and communities to build a complete support ecosystem that enables girls to progress from education to innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership.
“The future is green. The future is inclusive. The future is African,” he said, stressing that Africa could not build an inclusive green economy while excluding half of its population from science, engineering, technology and environmental leadership.
Girls must lead Africa’s green transition
Mr. Adams said Africa’s environmental challenges—including climate change, deforestation, land degradation, illegal mining, polluted water bodies, biodiversity loss and unpredictable weather patterns—should be viewed not only as threats but as opportunities for innovation.
He argued that girls in rural and urban communities alike possess the creativity and intelligence to develop solutions in areas such as renewable energy, climate-smart agriculture, water purification, waste management and environmental monitoring.
According to him, the continent’s ability to address these challenges will depend on whether governments invest deliberately in girls’ education and technical skills.
“We cannot build an inclusive green economy while excluding half of our population from the laboratories, engineering workshops, innovation centres, boardrooms and policymaking spaces where the future is being shaped,” he said.
Practical STEM education
Mr. Adams called for STEM education to move beyond examination-focused learning and become more practical and solution-oriented.
He proposed that schools become “living laboratories of sustainability,” where students engage in projects involving tree planting, recycling, water conservation, renewable energy systems, climate-smart agriculture and community environmental monitoring.
He said governments should provide well-equipped science laboratories, reliable electricity and internet access, scholarships, safe transportation, disability-inclusive facilities and adequate sanitation, noting that these factors significantly influence girls’ participation and success in STEM.
Industry, he added, must provide mentorship, internships, apprenticeships, research support and seed funding for female-led environmental innovations.
Bridging tradition and technology
A major theme of his address was the need to integrate indigenous knowledge with modern technology.
Mr. Adams said Africa should not choose between traditional environmental knowledge and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, geographic information systems, drones and digital weather systems.
He proposed the establishment of community climate-innovation laboratories where elders, scientists, teachers and girls could work together to combine local knowledge with scientific research and technological tools.
“Girls can become the bridge between local knowledge and modern technology—transforming community experience into data, applications, early-warning systems and sustainable enterprises,” he said.
He stressed that indigenous knowledge must be collected with community consent, properly acknowledged and protected from exploitation.
From learning to leadership
Mr. Adams argued that access to STEM education alone is insufficient unless girls are able to influence public policy and decision-making.
He called for measurable national targets for girls’ enrolment, retention, completion, employment and leadership in STEM and environmental sectors, as well as greater representation of young women on environmental committees, climate advisory bodies, research councils and community planning institutions.
He also emphasised the importance of lifelong learning, noting that poverty, early motherhood, disability and other social challenges often interrupt girls’ education.
Flexible learning programmes, digital education platforms, community innovation centres and professional certification pathways, he said, are essential to ensure that women can continue learning and participating in emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, renewable energy and climate science.
Innovation must solve community problems
Mr. Adams highlighted the importance of social innovation, describing it as the practical application of science and technology to improve lives.
He cited examples such as solar-powered irrigation systems, low-cost water quality sensors, digital climate information platforms and waste-to-wealth enterprises, arguing that Africa needs locally grounded solutions designed with communities rather than imported technologies that fail to address local realities.
He urged governments, universities and development partners to create pathways through which girls can identify environmental problems, develop prototypes, access funding and scale their innovations into sustainable enterprises.
Call for coordinated action
Mr. Adams called on governments to adopt gender-responsive STEM and climate education policies, strengthen partnerships between schools, universities and industry, and increase investment in green skills and female entrepreneurship.
He also urged parents, traditional leaders and religious leaders to challenge cultural stereotypes that discourage girls from pursuing science and engineering.
“We must stop measuring success only by the number of girls who attend STEM programmes. We must also measure how many complete their education, enter green careers, establish enterprises, receive funding, influence policy and become leaders,” he said.
Concluding his address, Mr. Adams said Africa’s environmental and economic future would depend on connecting education, innovation, employment, entrepreneurship and leadership.
“When we educate a girl in STEM, we unlock her potential. When we connect her knowledge to environmental action, we strengthen her community. When we invest in her innovation, we advance Africa’s green economy. And when we give her a seat at the decision-making table, we transform the future of our continent.”
He said Africa’s green future must be innovative, inclusive and rooted in lifelong learning, with girls placed at the centre of the continent’s sustainable development agenda.
He concluded by calling for deliberate investment in education, innovation and environmental stewardship, saying Africa must ensure that no girl’s potential is wasted and no community is left behind in the transition to a sustainable and climate-resilient future.
