Bulgaria Among EU Countries With Highest Share of Female Scientists

Jerusalem, 11 February, 2026 (TPS-IL) -- Brussels (BTA) – 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. The figures were released on Wednesday to mark International Day of Women and Girls in Science.

In 2008, 3.4 million women in the EU worked in these fields, reaching 5.2 million in 2014 and 7.9 million in 2024.

Women made up 40.5% of the workforce among scientists and engineers across all economic sectors in the EU in 2024. This share was higher in knowledge-intensive services (45.1%) and services (45%). In manufacturing, women made up 22.4% of scientists and engineers.

Among EU countries, the share of women scientists and engineers varies considerably in 2024, with the highest shares recorded in Latvia (50.9%), Denmark (48.8%), Estonia (47.9%), Spain (47.6%) and Bulgaria and Ireland (both 47.3%). Women scientists and engineers are least-represented in Finland (30.7%), Hungary (31.7%), Luxembourg (32.4%), Slovakia (33.6%) and Germany (34.6%).

At level 1 of the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistical Purposes, women scientists and engineers are in the majority in 11 regions of the EU: 4 regions of Spain – Canary Islands (58.8 per cent), Central (52.5 per cent), North-East (52.4 per cent) and South (50.3 per cent), 2 regions of Portugal – Azores (57.3 per cent) and Madeira (56.4 per cent), Central macro-region (54.8 per cent) and East macro-region (54 per cent) in Poland, North and South-East regions in Bulgaria (53.3 per cent), Northern Sweden in Sweden (52 per cent) and Latvia (50.9 per cent).

The lowest share of female scientists and engineers was recorded in the Hungarian Central Region (30 percent), Continental Finland (30.7 percent), the Southern Region in Italy (31.1 percent) and in the German regions of Rhineland-Palatinate (31.3 percent), Baden-Württemberg (31.7 percent) and Hesse (32.3 percent).