About 60 companies, organizations and government agencies have been conducting tours of their offices for female junior and senior high school students in Tokyo this summer to promote the field of science and technology.

The initiative is intended to encourage female students to pick science and technology subjects in higher education as Japan lags behind other countries in terms of the proportion of women engaged such fields.

The host entities introduce cutting-edge technologies to visiting female students and arrange meetings for them to interact with female researchers.

Last month, electronics maker Fujitsu invited some 30 female junior and senior high school students to a facility showcasing its technologies in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture.

The students were given an introduction to some of the company¡¯s products, including a quantum computer and a judging support system for gymnastics performances utilizing 3D sensors and artificial intelligence.

The students posed questions to female researchers and engineers on a range of topics, from their job descriptions and why they chose to enter the field of science and technology, to their daily lives.

At an office in Tokyo, U.S. chip giant Nvidia demonstrated AI-fueled games and graphics processors to female students. They asked a participating female employee questions including why she joined the company and what some of the challenging things she faced at work were.

Masataka Osaki, chief of Nvidia¡¯s Japan operations, told the students, ¡°There must be more places where you can flourish.¡±

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is behind the initiative, which is expected to see the participation of NEC, Mitsubishi Electric and Microsoft Japan.

A 2023 report by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development showed Japan ranking the lowest among its 38 member countries in the proportion of female university graduates engaged in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, at 17.5%.

This is because ¡°there are social and cultural stereotypes about genders, as well as gender gaps from the stage of education,¡± a Fujitsu official said.