Fatima Al-Farsi

Pioneered STEM education for women in Oman, creating pathways for Arab female engineers.

Fatima Al-Farsi (b. 1975) is a trailblazing educator from Oman who broke cultural barriers to advance women in science and technology. In 1998, she founded STEM for Women Academy, Oman's first institution dedicated to training female engineers. Starting with 12 students in a converted mosque, the academy now educates over 500 women annually across mechanical, electrical, and software engineering disciplines. Fatima's 2020 Nature article highlighted how her program increased female engineering graduates in Oman from 5% to 35% nationwide. Her partnership with Shell created the Middle East's first female robotics team, winning the FIRST Global Challenge in 2017. Fatima's advocacy led to Oman's 2019 law requiring equal STEM education opportunities for girls. Her TEDx talk "Building Engineers One Girl at a Time" has been translated into 15 languages. Despite receiving death threats from conservative groups, Fatima remains a vocal advocate for women's rights in STEM, recently launching Arabic Women in Tech, a regional network connecting 2,000+ professionals.