First Lady urges creation of a unified STEM community

The creation of a unified STEM community is important to addressing challenges facing the people working in the field, says First Lady Sajidha Mohamed.

Speaking at the first session of the Maldives National University's (MNU) graduation ceremony held at the MNU Auditorium on Sunday morning, Sajidha described STEM – an umbrella term used to group together the distinct but related technical disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics – as the basis for societal innovation.

STEM is the basis for societal innovation, and all global disciplines lead to professionals with STEM backgrounds, she said.

Sajidha noted that despite the importance of STEM, there are concerns relating to gender equality within the field.

She highlighted on the challenges both men and women face in studying, participating in work, and achieving their full potential in STEM.

She then spoke of the importance of creating a unified STEM community to address these challenges.

Directly addressing the graduates and their parents, Sajidha celebrated the remarkable achievements of the graduates. She commended their hard work, acknowledging that graduating from MNU is a significant accomplishment. She then expressed her hope that all graduates will adapt to work environments and embrace diversity in their future endeavors.

Aim to make determined efforts with courage and compassion to build a promising future for the coming generations, she urged.

During Sunday's first session of MNU's graduation, 28 students graduated from the Faculty of Shariah and Law, and 94 graduated from the School of Nursing.

At the ceremony, the First Lady handed over certificates to graduates who completed degree and master's level courses at the MNU. She also presented honor awards to the two graduates who received grade points 3.5 and above, and first place in their course programs.

MNU has over 3,000 students, eleven faculties, and five campuses, including the Male’ City campus.