Rakuten inspires young minds to bridge the STEM gender gap

November 23, 2024 2 min read

In Japan, women represent only 16% of graduates in STEM fields. As a pioneer of tech-driven business, Rakuten is leveraging its position to address this.

Worldwide, according to the Global Gender Gap Report (2023) by World Economic Forum, women comprise only 29.2% of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) workforce, compared to nearly 50% of non-STEM occupations. In Japan, the disparity is even more stark, with women representing only 16% of graduates in STEM fields. As a pioneer of tech-driven business in Japan, Rakuten is leveraging its unique position to address this imbalance.

Rakuten volunteers have launched several initiatives designed to inspire the next generation of tech professionals, with a particular focus on empowering young women to pursue careers in STEM. Through these programs, Rakuten’s Tech Divisions have been conducting classes across Japan, introducing students to cutting-edge topics such as cybersecurity, data science and artificial intelligence.

*Saki Kozai hopes to leverage Rakuten’s position to effect change in Japan’s tech sector.*

“We started this activity because we are trying to enhance gender diversity in tech divisions,” explains Saki Kozai from Rakuten’s Tech Human Resources & General Affairs Department. “By holding events related to women’s empowerment, we hope to do something not only to change in-house gender diversity, but also society.”

One persistent challenge they face is a scarcity of visible role models.

“There are several possible reasons why the ratio of female students who major in STEM fields is less than male students,” Kozai notes. “But one of the reasons might be that they see fewer female role models working in STEM.”

This understanding has shaped Rakuten’s latest initiative, which brought the team to Ritsumeikan Moriyama Junior and Senior High School in Japan’s Shiga Prefecture. There, Rakuten engineer Hikaru Tochigi shared her personal journey in tech with approximately 40 eager students.

Tochigi is well aware of the responsibility that comes with being a role model: “I believe that grown-ups that inspire children are the foundation for children to think about ‘who they want to be,’ and the light that guides the hope of the next generation and the future of the world.”