Nigeria, Feb. 12 -- Every year on February 11, the world celebrates the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, established by the UN in 2015 to recognize the critical role of women in STEM and confront persistent gender gaps in research, leadership, and innovation worldwide.

STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) is more than subjects in school, it is the engine of innovation, the backbone of discovery, and the map to our collective future.

I still remember the sharp scent of acetone and the clean clink of glassware the first time I stepped into a university laboratory at sixteen. It felt like entering a cathedral of curiosity. One afternoon, absorbed in an organic synthesis experiment that refused to behave...