{"id":109372,"date":"2025-10-21T18:00:58","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T18:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/uncategorized\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering"},"modified":"2025-10-21T18:44:43","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T18:44:43","slug":"from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering","title":{"rendered":"From \u2018Ghetto\u2019 to Global Impact Maker in Engineering"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Ghana. <\/strong><\/span>It is an age-long tradition for a female Ghanaian child to perform household chores at the expense of going to school, not to talk of venturing into a male-dominated field.<\/b><\/p>\n

But the story of Juliana Somuah is one that defies this stereotypical lifestyle. Growing up in the neighbourhoods of Soko and Banana Inn in Dansoman, Accra \u2013 areas she describes as \u201cghetto\u201d \u2013 Juliana learned early that success will not come easy, so did she take the bull by the horn.<\/p>\n

Currently, as a PhD student in Infrastructure and Environmental Systems at the University of North Carolina (UNC Charlotte) and an award-winning advocate for women in engineering, she\u2019s proving that barriers are meant to be broken, not accepted.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not your typical African woman,\u201d Juliana tells the Ghana News Agency in an interview on how she ventured into a male dominated engineering and facility management field, inspired by his father\u2019s motivation.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost times, people think that I have manly attributes, because I\u2019m very driven\u201d she said noting that the drive cultivated through what she calls a \u201cmilitary style of training\u201d growing up as the only girl among three brothers, has propelled her from the streets of Accra to the corridors of American academia and industry leadership.<\/p>\n

A foundation built on opportunity and ambition<\/b><\/p>\n

Despite growing up in challenging neighbourhoods, Juliana\u2019s family stood out. Her father, Charles, worked for over 30 years at Ghana Water Company, managing government water distribution projects across the country.<\/p>\n

This exposure to engineering through her father\u2019s work planted the seeds for her future career path. Juliana\u2019s path to engineering was not accidental as her father recognised her unconventional mindset and determination to exceed traditional expectations for women in Africa, actively encouraged her toward Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields.<\/p>\n

She said the father knew her mindset of \u2018not fitting in\u2019 and doing more than what was expected of women in Africa, \u201cSo, I guess he felt like, my daughter will do very well in this field.\u201d<\/p>\n

After completing her general arts education at UST and later studying Building Technology (now Construction Technology), Juliana found herself working at the WAPCO (West African Gas Pipeline Company) for six years, transitioning from a National Service Person to a member of staff, managing operations and maintenance on critical infrastructure, without initially realising she was practicing facility management\u2014a field that would later become her specialty and passion.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat job was facility management, I didn\u2019t know. Because in Ghana, people don\u2019t really talk about FM. I just didn\u2019t know I was doing facility management, but that has now become my love,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n

The American Dream Realised<\/b><\/p>\n

Frustrated by gender-based limitations in Ghana\u2019s engineering sector and driven by her desire for an environment where she could fully express her capabilities, Juliana started planning her move to the United States in 2019. Despite COVID-related setbacks, she persevered until securing a position at UNC Charlotte.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still felt like people were not hearing me well. Even on the job, there are some jobs that they would give to my male counterpart and [say], \u2018oh, okay, so as for you, you do the office staff,\u2019 but I felt I could do more.\u201d<\/p>\n

The transition to American academia proved both validating and challenging. While her expertise was recognised and valued, she still faced scepticism in her male-dominated field.<\/p>\n

To overcome this, her response has been: \u201cLet the work speak for itself. If you know your stuff and you sell your stuff very well, you don\u2019t have to prove so much. Give me a task and let me execute it. If you think that I don\u2019t have all the technical capabilities, give me an opportunity to prove myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Making Global Impact<\/b><\/p>\n

Today, Juliana serves as a resource person for the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) Ghana chapter, working to establish student chapters at the University of Development Studies (UDS), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), and the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT).<\/p>\n

She\u2019s developing mentorship programmes to introduce young Ghanaians to facility management opportunities and creating pathways for students to attend American conferences and build international networks.<\/p>\n

Her impact extends beyond national borders. As one of eight Graduate Life Fellows at UNC Charlotte, she counsels high school and undergraduate students, particularly women, to consider construction and facility management careers. This work recently earned her recognition through an award specifically for promoting women in Facility Management.<\/p>\n

Breaking the Silence<\/b><\/p>\n

Perhaps most importantly, Juliana refuses to be alone at the top, bemoaning the virtual absence of young Ghanaian engineering and FM professionals at the international level, including conferences. The situation has challenged her to engage in mentorship and cultural change.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s one thing that I noticed about the Ghanaian culture. We are shy, we don\u2019t want to talk, we don\u2019t want to mingle. I had to snap out of that thing when I came into this country. The only way to get to the top is talk. Talk your way to the top,\u201d she encourages young professionals.<\/p>\n

As IFMA Ghana plans a major conference next year, bringing international members to Ghana, Juliana sees an opportunity to formalise and expand her impact.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s building partnerships with universities, developing mentorship frameworks, and creating sustainable pathways for young Ghanaians, especially women, to enter and excel in engineering fields.<\/p>\n

Juliana Somuah\u2019s journey from the neighbourhoods of Dansoman to international recognition in facility management represents more than personal achievement. It\u2019s a blueprint for how Africa can harness its human capital by valuing talent over connections, merit over politics, and long-term maintenance over short-term fixes.<\/p>\n

Her story challenges African societies to create environments where driven individuals, particularly women, can thrive without having to leave the continent to find their full potential.<\/p>\n

Source: Ghana News Agency<\/b><\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Ghana<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Ghana. It is an age-long tradition for a female Ghanaian child to perform household chores at the expense of going to school, not to talk of venturing into a male-dominated field. But the story of Juliana Somuah is one that defies this stereotypical lifestyle. Growing up in the neighbourhoods of Soko and Banana […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":109371,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,6],"tags":[429],"class_list":["post-109372","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-files","tag-ghana"],"yoast_head":"\nFrom \u2018Ghetto\u2019 to Global Impact Maker in Engineering - Ghana<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It is an age-long tradition for a female Ghanaian child to perform household chores at the expense of going to school ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"From \u2018Ghetto\u2019 to Global Impact Maker in Engineering\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It is an age-long tradition for a female Ghanaian child to perform household chores at the expense of going to school ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Ghana\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-21T18:00:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-21T18:44:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2025\/10\/sm_1761059657.406449.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1068\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"712\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"From \u2018Ghetto\u2019 to Global Impact Maker in Engineering\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-21T18:00:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-21T18:44:43+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering\"},\"wordCount\":991,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2025\/10\/sm_1761059657.406449.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"ghana\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"files\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/from-ghetto-to-global-impact-maker-in-engineering\",\"name\":\"From \u2018Ghetto\u2019 to Global Impact Maker in Engineering - 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