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弥合柬埔寨STEM教育和职业中的性别差距（英）

文化传媒 2026-04-01 亚开行 Billy

Cambodia’s STEM education and careers face a significant gender gap, with women underrepresented despite rising overall enrollment in postsecondary education. The gender gap persists, particularly in engineering and information and communication technology (ICT), where women account for only 19% of students in the youngest cohort. Key drivers for STEM major choice include interest, job prospects, family influence, and academic performance, while barriers include social norms, lack of career information and guidance, limited mobility, and workplace constraints such as wage gaps and inflexible hours.

The study, using mixed methods including surveys of 600 STEM graduates and paired interviews with 28 students/graduates, found that social norms and family expectations restrict women’s STEM participation, especially in rural areas where mobility is limited. Women in STEM careers face challenges like lack of role models, limited career progression, and wage gaps, while those not employed in STEM often cite limited career information and family influence.

Sector analysis reveals men dominate mining, construction, and finance, while women are concentrated in education, health, and microenterprises, contributing to persistent gender gaps in earnings and advancement. Policy recommendations include embedding gender-responsive STEM learning in national education policy, strengthening career guidance at key transitions, promoting equitable student recruitment and retention policies, and strengthening care systems to support women’s STEM careers. Coordinated action across education, labor, and gender policies is essential to close the gender gap and enhance human capital development.

KEY POINTS Bridging the Gender Gapin Cambodia’s STEM Educationand Careers •Women’sunderrepresentationin science, technology,engineering, andmathematics (STEM) inCambodia reflects structuralconstraints rather than lowerinterest or ability, reinforcedby limited career informationand guidance. Veronica Mendizabal JoffreSenior Gender and DevelopmentSpecialistGender Equality DivisionClimate Change and SustainableDevelopment DepartmentAsian Development Bank Chea SathyaResearch FellowCambodia Development ResourceInstitute (CDRI) •Despite rising femaleenrollment overall, womenremain significantlyunderrepresented inengineering and informationand communicationstechnology, where returnsare highest. Sopheak SongSenior Research Fellow, CDRI Boravin TannResearch Fellow, CDRI •Social norms, familyexpectations, and limitedcare systems constrainwomen’s STEM educationand career choices bylimiting mobility, time, andthe ability to balance paidwork and care. INTRODUCTION Cambodia’s development ambitions increasingly depend on a workforce equipped withscience, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) skills. National strategiesemphasize technology, innovation, and human capital development as key drivers ofeconomic growth. Yet participation in STEM education and careers remains low anduneven, particularly for women.1 •Women’s retention in STEMjobs is shaped by workplacepractices, such as wage gaps,inflexible hours, and limitedpromotion, rather than lackof interest or commitment. While overall enrollment in postsecondary education has increased, women remainsignificantly underrepresented in STEM fields, especially in engineering and informationand communication technology. According to the Ministry of Education, Youth, andSports (MOEYS), the gender gap in STEM education persists and has widened in recentyears, with twice as many men choosing STEM majors in academic year 2022/2023compared to women.2 •Closing the gender gap inSTEM requires coordinatedaction across educationsystems, career transitions,and gender-inclusiveworkplaces. ISBN 978-92-9277-746-3 (print)ISBN 978-92-9277-747-0 (PDF)ISSN 2071-7202 (print)ISSN 2218-2675 (PDF)Publication Stock No. BRF260119-2DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.22617/BRF260119-2 ADB BRIEFS NO. 385 Many higher education institutions (HEIs) offer scholarships toattract students into STEM fields, most of which are awardedprimarily on prior academic performance. However, academicresults often reflect unequal access to quality schooling,tutoring, time to study, and encouragement, constraints thattend to affect girls more strongly, particularly those from ruraland lower-income households. As a result, highly competitivemerit-based scholarships can unintentionally reinforce earlierdisadvantages. Some HEIs offer fee reductions or scholarships forfemale students, but these are not consistently targeted to needor linked to retention and career pathways. Private universities alsobalance scholarship provision with financial sustainability. There isscope to further explore scholarship models that would maintaincompetitiveness while expanding access for women in STEM. These gaps reflect a combination of factors. STEM programs inhigher education are not always aligned with evolving industryneeds,3and many institutions face constraints in resources andinfrastructure.4At the same time, social norms, family expectations,limited access to career information, and workplace conditionsshape women’s educational and employment trajectories in waysthat differ from those of men. As a result, women’s participation inSTEM is constrained not only by education system capacity, butalso by broader social and labor market dynamics. This policy brief has two objectives. First, it presents key findingsfrom a study examining the drivers of, and barriers to, women’senrollment in STEM education and participation in STEM careersin Cambodia. Second, based on these findings, it proposes policyoptions to strengthen the STEM pipeline, from education toemployment, by addressing structural constraints and improvingaccess, retention, and progression for women in STEM fields. Some local nongovernment organizations (NGOs) work directlywith young people to promote STEM, especially female youth.For example, NGO programs provide additional learning hoursin key subjects like mathematics, physics, chemistry, and biology.Female students are encouraged to participate in various nationalSTEM competitions. Another example, the Sisters of Codeprogram, aims to enhance female students’ coding skills andbuild confidence in digital competencies. However, these NGOsoperate based on funds from development partners and donors,so their activities are limited in scope and geographical reach,as most are based in the capital city of Phnom Penh and otherurban areas. This brief conceptualizes the gender gap in STEM as a pipelinechallenge shaped by (i) early exposure and educational quality,(ii) household and social norms influencing the selection

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