[1] The United Nations General Assembly passed resolution 70/212 on 22 December 2015,[2] which proclaimed the 11th day of February as the annual commemoration of the observance.

Between the 1960s and 1980s, the number of women obtaining science and engineering degrees steadily increased in American universities, however reached an unexpected plateau from the 1980s.

[12] On 22 December 2015, the United Nations General Assembly met to adopt resolution 70/212 titled "International Day of Women and Girls in Science".

[16] The Assembly is co-sponsored by the Permanent Missions to the United Nations of Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Australia, Bhutan, Chile, Ecuador, Finland, Greece, Latvia, Mexico, Nigeria, Republic of Korea, San Marino, and Uzbekistan.

As a permanent sponsor mission, the Australian Government has actively taken steps to promote and encourage female participation in alignment with the recognition and celebration of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science.

To commemorate the event in 2022, the Australian Government Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources committed A$6.7 million of funding to address female underrepresentation in STEM fields by expanding successful initiatives targeting the issue.

[22] Globally, non-government and corporate organisations have also recognised the International Day of Women and Girls in Science through their own initiatives to promote the role of females in STEM.

For example, in 2017 for the 2nd annual commemoration of the event, the International Particle Physics Outreach Group, a network of academics and scientists from universities and research laboratories around the globe, launched masterclasses ran by female scientists for female students across Barcelona, Cagliari, Cosenza, Heidelberg, Madrid, Paris, Prague, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.

L'Oreal sponsors the L'Oreal-UNESCO For Women in Science Awards which are presented annually on 11 February[26] to five female scientists from regions across the globe to recognise esteemed accomplishment in scientific fields.