Imaan Omar has made a space for herself and now encourages more girls to join the tech and STEM space.
South Africa (25 March 2026) – There was a time when Imaan Omar almost didn’t belong. When she first joined her robotics team in Cape Town, she was the only girl in the room. It would have been easy to walk away. To choose something more comfortable. To find a space where she blended in.
But she didn’t. She stayed.
And in doing so, she quietly began rewriting what that space could look like. Not just for herself, but for every girl who would come after her.
Today, at just 16 years old, Imaan is the Team Captain of Astrovo FTC Team 17955 and has been named a FIRST® Tech Challenge Leadership Award Finalist, placing her among a select group of young people in the world recognised for leadership, innovation, and impact.
It’s a title that reflects years of unseen work.
Late nights. Pressure. Self-doubt. The quiet determination to keep going, even when the odds don’t always feel in your favour.
Under her leadership, her team has achieved some of the highest honours in South African robotics, including:
- Winning the Inspire Award at both the Regional and National levels: the most prestigious award in the FIRST Tech Challenge
- Being crowned the 2025 South African Champions
- Earning multiple national and regional awards across engineering, design, and innovation
But Imaan’s story is not just about winning. It’s about impact. While building robots and competing at the highest level, she has also been building people.
“It feels like a dream and is such an honour and a big responsibility. Coming from where I do, opportunities like this don’t come easily. I carry not just my own hopes, but the hopes of my family, my community and other young girls who don’t always get seen. Representing South Africa means showing the world that girls like me belong in STEM spaces too. I am not just chasing my own dreams, I am trying to open doors so other girls can believe they belong there too.”
She has led more than 40 STEM and community outreach initiatives, dedicating over 200 hours to mentoring, teaching, and creating access to robotics in communities like Lavender Hill and Paarl – places where opportunities like these don’t always come easily.
Through this work, she has helped young learners, especially girls, begin to see themselves in spaces they may never have imagined before.
“It reminds me that we are capable of so much more than the limits placed on us. Seeing women rise in STEM gives me courage. Especially because, for a long time it felt like those spaces weren’t made for girls like me. It inspires me to keep pushing, not just for myself but for every girl who is still finding her voice.”
Her voice has grown just as powerfully as her skill.
She has been recognised with the #FIRSTLikeAGirl Award, featured by the global Girls in FIRST initiative, and continues to advocate for inclusion in STEM spaces where girls are still underrepresented. Her journey has already taken her beyond South Africa’s borders.
In 2025, she travelled to Houston, Texas, to compete at the FIRST® Tech Challenge World Championships, standing among some of the best young minds in the world.
That same year, she travelled to China to participate in the 9th Belt and Road Teenager Maker Camp, collaborating with young innovators from across the globe and representing South African talent on an international platform.
She has also participated in an International Space Station project and attended ISS Space Camp, further deepening her exposure to global STEM innovation.
And now, she returns to the world stage. This time recognised not just for what she builds, but for how she leads. As a Leadership Award Finalist, Imaan will once again represent South Africa globally.
But behind every opportunity like this is a reality many young South Africans face. Talent is everywhere. Opportunity is not.
And while Imaan continues to rise, doors like these often depend on support, on people and organisations willing to see potential and invest in it. You can support her dream here.
“Don’t let where you come from decide where you can go. You don’t have to have everything figured out; you just have to start. There will be challenges, and there will be moments where you feel like giving up, but your dreams matter. Keep going, even when it’s hard, because one day you might become the reason another girl believes she can too.”
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