site.btaBulgaria among EU Member States with Highest Share of Female Scientists, Engineers in 2024

The number of women working as scientists and engineers in the European Union increased in 2024. Bulgaria is among the Member States with the highest share of women in these professions, according to Eurostat data published on Wednesday.

Data show an increase from 3.4 million women working as scientists and engineers in the EU in 2008 to 5.2 million in 2014, reaching 7.9 million in 2024. 

Across all economic activities, women represented 40.5% of the scientists and engineers’ workforce in 2024. This share was higher in the total knowledge-intensive services (45.1%) and in the services (45%) categories. In manufacturing, women represented 22.4% of scientists and engineers. 

Among the EU Member States, the proportion of female scientists and engineers varied widely in 2024, with the highest shares registered in Latvia (50.9%), Denmark (48.8%), Estonia (47.9%), Spain (47.6%), and Bulgaria and Ireland (both 47.3%). The lowest representation of female scientists and engineers was in Finland (30.7%), followed by Hungary (31.7%), Luxembourg (32.4%), Slovakia (33.6%) and Germany (34.6%).

At level 1 of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, female scientists and engineers were in the majority in 11 EU regions. These include four regions of Spain: Canarias (58.8%), Centro (52.5%) and Noroeste (52.4%) and Sur (50.3%); two regions of Portugal: Regiao Autonoma dos Acores (57.3%) and Madeira (56.4%);
Makroregion Centralny (54.8%) and Makroregion Wschodni (54.0%) in Poland; Severna i yugoiztochna in Bulgaria (53.3%); Norra Sverige in Sweden (52.0%); and Latvia (50.9%).

The smallest proportion of female scientists and engineers was recorded in the Hungarian region of Kozep-Magyarorszag (30.0%), the Finnish region of Manner-Suomi (30.7%), Sud in Italy (31.1%) and in the German regions of Rheinland-Pfalz (31.3%), Baden-Wurttemberg (31.7%) and Hessen (32.3%).

The 11th International Day of Women and Girls in Science is celebrated on February 11, Eurostat recalled.