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De Beers Group is pleased to award scholarships to the value of US$48,825 to 14 Canadian women enrolled in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields at universities and colleges in Canada.

The scholarships are awarded as part of De Beers Group’s partnership with UN Women and the company’s commitment to stand with women and girls in its host countries.

Of the recipients, 11 are from the Northwest Territories, two are from Northern Ontario and one is from Nunavut. Seven US$2,175 entrance scholarships will go to new recipients for the 2020-2021 school year, while seven women will receive a second year of funding under the 2019-2020 program. These awards are administered by Scholarships Canada, which received more than 200 applications this year for the De Beers Group program.

“As a global leader for inclusion and diversity, it is critical that De Beers Group supports women who want to enter fields that have been traditionally dominated by men,” said Mpumi Zikalala, Managing Director of De Beers Group Managed Operations, which oversees De Beers’ operations in Canada. “We are especially proud that all of these scholarships are supporting women from our host communities.”

The scholarship recipients are enrolled in a wide variety of fields of study, including neuroscience, Bachelor of Science programs, chemical engineering, and engineering.

Since launching in 2018, a total of 45 scholarships have been awarded to Canadian women through the De Beers Group/UN Women partnership, including 22 scholarships at the University of Waterloo and University of Calgary. For the 2020-2021 school year, four scholarships will be awarded at Waterloo and six at Calgary through the De Beers Group program.

As a Global HeForShe Thematic Champion for UN Women, De Beers Group provided US$3 million to support a variety of programs for women and girls in its producer countries, including US$600,000 to support education for women and girls in Canada.