This project aims to raise awareness of automation and control among 14- to 16-year-old girls from both rural and urban schools in South Africa as part of a broader STEM education initiative. The objective is to ignite their interest in Control Engineering and encourage them to pursue careers in STEM fields.
Workshops will be facilitated through the Science Centres at the University of Zululand (UNIZULU), Cape Town, Durban, the University of Pretoria, and SACAC. Each workshop will host thirty female learners from the Zululand region and other parts of the country (Durban, Cape Town, and Pretoria) for an in-person session on Robotics and Scratch coding. The workshop will also introduce participants to foundational concepts in Control Theory.
Project Lead: Prof. Prof Syamala Krishnannair, University of Zululand, South Africa; [email protected]
IFAC Sponsor: South African Council for Automation and Control
The “Girls in Control” workshop aimed to inspire young girls aged 14 to 16 years in South Africa to explore Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. Targeting this critical developmental stage, the workshop focused on breaking gender stereotypes, empowering girls, and introducing them to foundational STEM skills through hands-on activities. Its core objectives were to ignite curiosity, encourage problem-solving, and nurture creativity in a collaborative environment. The workshop featured interactive presentations, live demonstrations, coding sessions, and mentorship from accomplished women in STEM.
The initiative is particularly relevant in the context of South Africa’s need for control engineers, a profession in high demand due to the growing automation trends. Control Engineering, which blends Electrical, Computer, and Mechanical Engineering, is crucial for South Africa’s SET (Science, Engineering, and Technology) workforce, and this workshop helps bridge the gender gap by encouraging more female students to pursue SET careers. The program has targeted both rural and urban schools, with a focus on reaching girls aged 14 to 16 years, particularly from underrepresented areas.
In 2025, six workshops were held between 19 March and 17 November 2025 with financial and logistical support from both SACAC and IFAC. Three of these workshops took place at the UNIZULU Science Center in the Zululand region, while the other three were hosted at the Science Centres at the University of Pretoria, the Cape Town Science Center and the science Center at the University of KwaZulu Natal on 5 August ,25 August and 17 November, respectively. The first session of each workshop introduced the concept of a feedback loop and demonstrated its real-world applications in control problems. The content, which covered control theory principles and practical examples, was originally developed by the International Federation of Automatic Control. To enhance accessibility, the material was translated into isiZulu and Sepedi, providing the girls with a clearer understanding of the exciting career opportunities in Control Engineering and related STEM fields.
The second session featured a science exhibition, science tour, coding with Scratch, and hands-on activities in a Robotics workshop, providing the girls with a hands-on introduction to Control Engineering. These interactive activities, including coding and exhibitions, sparked the girls’ interest and curiosity about STEM subjects. Many of them were previously unfamiliar with STEM fields, including Control Engineering.
The final session of the workshop featured motivational speeches from a group of accomplished women in STEM: Ms. Sethabile Madolo, an engineer at Anglo American; Ms. Nicole Seumangal, an engineer at Tronox Sands; Ms Sphindile Khanyile , an engineer at South 32; Ms Marcelle Staffy, an engineer at Mintek and Prof Lidia Auret, an engineer at Stone Three. These inspiring women delivered talks during sessions held in Zululand, Pretoria, and Cape Town, encouraging the girls to consider and pursue careers in STEM.
