Two partner to empower women in innovation, research
Heritors Labs Limited in partnership with the RISA Fund has organised the 2nd edition of its policy dialogue series under the Women in Innovation and Research Conclave (WIRC).
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The series is a thought leadership platform that pools seasoned and top-level women in research, innovation and the social sciences to spearhead the empowerment of women within the ecosystem value chain through policy discussions.
The WIRC is a partnership between Heritors Labs and its funding partner, RISA Fund—with the support of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and the UK International Development Office.
It is anchored on four thematic pillars: mentorship, policy dialogues, promoting access to finance, and business pitch contests—to support commercially viable women-led startups.
The one-day roundtable dialogue, held in Accra, formed part of the company’s broad scope of work to highlight the burgeoning potentials of women in research, innovation, and other critical sectors of the economy, explore opportunities for growth and mentorship, and proffer achievable solutions to identifiable problems.
Opening the session, Derrydean Dadzie, chief executive officer of Heritors Labs, reiterated his outfit’s strategic intent to continue taking tangible steps and actions that enable the commercialisation of research and innovation outcomes by women and excluded communities, driving their shift from the labs to the markets.
He indicated that the WIRC serves as a vehicle to provide the needed impetus to empower women innovators and researchers, as well as those in the critical sectors of social sciences, to drive outcomes of commercialisation, entrepreneurship, and socio-economic development.
“The WIRC is a big scope of work for Heritors Labs; it's a thought conclave to address challenges women and people in excluded communities face as well as amplify contributions of women in the research, innovation and the social sciences setup,” he said.
He added: “Society has evolved with more and more women endeavouring on research and innovation initiatives. Increasingly, we see more women providing critical services in the innovation market and value chain.
Consequently, as a business dedicated to research and innovation commercialisation, we find it very tangential that the tremendous work being done by women in all aspects of life is propelled to the top to attract the needed commercial and socio-economic impacts.”
Mr. Dadzie cited funding constraints and cultural perceptions about women in the research and innovation space as key barriers that needed to be addressed, adding that the dialogue session convened representative women to analyse and dissect key topics, and present recommendations to the powers that be: policymakers and the appropriate institutions.
Designed in 2023, the Women in Innovation and Research Conclave is driven by an aggressive commitment to bringing change in Ghana’s research and innovation ecosystem by harnessing women's talents and innovations.
For her part, Professor Marian Quain, deputy director-general of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and a member of the WIRC Advisory Committee (WIRAC), emphasised the need for tailored structures that support the advancement of women researchers and innovators.
“Women have been empowered to compete with the right skill set and innovations within the STEM fields; however, they often find themselves in vulnerable positions that require specific systems to enable them to thrive,” she said.
According to her, women can make a difference with their innovations in the highly male-dominated discipline with targeted financial support.
“This requires the deliberate attempt to look for women who have the desire to excel in innovation and research and provide them with the right support,” she added.