Nazenin Wali, an Afghan scholar, has been awarded an Excellence Award from Rome Business School to pursue postgraduate studies in Artificial Intelligence. This award carries significance as millions of girls and women in Afghanistan face severe restrictions to fundamental rights, including access to education.
Nazenin’s academic accomplishments highlight the importance of educational opportunities for women, as a key to independence and freedom. She had previously received a full scholarship from the U.S. Embassy Afghanistan to pursue her bachelor’s degree. She graduated with honors in Psychology from the American university of Central Asia and Bard College.
On the importance of education for women and girls, Wali said: “It is very shameful to debate the right and access to education, it is a fundamental right of the girls and women in Afghanistan.” Nazenin has been born to the first regime of Taliban, when she has been introduced to a society where women were severely suppressed. However, she has not given up on working for a future that would lead her to this award. She believes that women of Afghanistan are “very intelligent and capable if they are not restricted and discriminated.”
Wali dedicates her academic award to the girls in Afghanistan who “dream to work in Technology and Innovations.” she studies Artificial intelligence in an era that technological transformation and AI integration to human experiences are increasing.
AI systems can learn stereotypes from training data. UNESCO has documented gender stereotypes in AI-generated texts, including descriptions that associate women with traditional or lower status. Therefore, women working in AI field and research can help identify these problems better and suggest inclusive Solutions. Women are now underrepresented in the teams building AI, According to UNESCO, women account for only 12% of AI research positions and 30% of professionals in the Broader AI sector.
While these figures are global statistics, the participation of Afghan women in technology, especially AI, remains exceptionally limited and gender equality in this field is even more critical.
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