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AGriDi Project launches third-party projects to stimulate agri-based digital innovation in West-Africa

Posted on by RSIF PASET

The kick-off meeting and capacity building workshop for third-party projects for the Accelerating inclusive green growth through agri-based digital innovation in West Africa (AGriDI) project will be physically held at the Université d’Abomey-Calavi in Cotonou, Benin from 14-18 March 2022. This follows an inception meeting that was held in a hybrid format, at icipe in June 2021.  The main objective of this meeting is to build a shared understanding and vision of the AGriDI project and a community of practice in agri-based digital innovations in West Africa.

Collaboration among various actors, including Governments, in the digital eco-system will remain key for the success of agri-food systems.  In this spirit, existing linkages between research and the technology sectors need to be strengthened further to support innovation, technology development. AGriDI projects will strengthen the livelihoods of smallholder farmers through its stakeholder engagement initiatives in supporting the acceleration of a digital revolution through training and community engagement activities.

“The importance of digital innovation in agri-business cannot be emphasised enough, this workshop will therefore serve as the official launch of the third-party projects and set the pace for a successful implementation phase” Dr Jonas Muagbe, AGriDI Project Manager

AGriDI is a 4-year intervention that will be implemented in the ECOWAS states in Western Africa region and is expected to lead to; (i) increased uptake of agri-based digital technologies by farmers and SMEs especially women and youth in the region; (ii) strengthened linkages between research communities, industry and policy actors in digital innovations in the region and (iii) a strengthened policy environment for scaling agri-business digital innovations in the region.

AGriDI is jointly implemented by the International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology, icipe as the Lead and its partners, the University of Abomey Calavi in Benin, Agropolis Foundation in France and Gearbox Pan African Network in Kenya and is one of the 8 granted projects financed under the ACP Innovation Fund of the European Union.

At the end of the meeting workshop, third-party projects will not only be officially launched, but  their members  will be expected to have a better understanding of the AGriDI project and other third-party projects.

For more information about the workshop, follow @AgridiAfr on twitter.

An Internship at the Regional Scholarship innovation Fund: A student perspective

Posted on by Sakina Kahindi

By Allan Ocholla, Former RSIF Annual Conference Intern

Having an internship at the Regional Scholarship innovation Fund (RSIF), International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) came at a time I was looking for an opportunity that combines my experience in participating in various open science programs and expertise in events management especially in an African setting.

The journey started when I was near completion of my Master’s degree in microbiology at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, Kenya. I was also in my last few months of a fellowship program, and like any other student near completion of their studies, I was stuck in front of a relentless loop of career options and looking for where to put my skills to good use.  While checking LinkedIn groups, I found the opportunity of joining RSIF as a conference intern. I connected so closely with the RSIF mission of increasing and strengthening high quality PhD programs in applied sciences, engineering and technology in Africa. The whole application process, from the time of application, interview and selection took less than month. I remember the day when I received an email that I got the position. I was so excited and immediately checked through my folders and notebooks in preparation for the next four months of co-organizing RSIF virtual pre-conference.

Application process

Typically, vacancies are advertised on the RSIF Website. You can also follow the RSIF official accounts on social media platforms and consider joining their mailing list for updates. The entry requirements may differ from one advertisement to another. For the majority of positions, a Bachelor’s degree or Master’s degree is the minimum requirement.

When applying for an opportunity at RSIF, make sure that your application is well written. You need to highlight both your professional and personal experiences. Mention your academic background and its relation to the position, cite your leadership positions, achievements you feel proud of, or even awards if applicable. Finally, try to mention your extracellular activities or voluntary work as it will show that you are an active person aware of social issues and capable of tackling development challenges.

My role at RSIF

My workstation was the resource mobilization unit. A normal working day was a combination of diverse internal and external meetings with different partners and fulfilling a set of desk tasks such as preparing invitation letters, working with the communications team to support dissemination of relevant conference materials, as well as supporting in the review of information required and ensuring they are complete and accurate. Indeed, the resource mobilization unit was the right place to acquire a variety of vital skills such as critical thinking and collaboration required to solve real world problems.

Throughout my first weeks, my supervisor ensured I had access to the necessary tools that to help me to fit into my role and get to understand my position.  Being part of the resource mobilization unit also gave me a chance to learn various fundraising strategies and appreciate the critical role that the Governments, private sector, foundations and philanthropy institutions play in the education ecosystem in Africa. Fortunately, the conference preparation was just starting so I was lucky to be involved from the beginning.

Key Learnings

Acting as both a participant and a member of the organizing team, I gained a unique perspective on virtual conferences, their challenges and opportunities. I have attended conferences before, virtual and in-person, and being part of the team co-organizing the first RSIF virtual pre-conference exceeded my expectations. Many RSIF pre-conference speakers highlighted the importance of collaboration and adaptability amidst the COVID-19 pandemic while rooting for Science, Technology and Innovation to be an enabler in unlocking opportunities in Africa. For instance, Ms Safaa El Kogeli, Education Practice Manager, Eastern and Southern Region, World Bank, noted in her opening remarks the need to train a critical mass of highly skilled PhD workforce to find innovative solutions with an aim of accelerating socio-economic growth and continue on the path of development. She also underscored the need to have deliberate efforts of ensuring women participation in RSIF programs. Dr Valentine Uwamariya, Minister of Education in Rwanda and PASET governing council chair also emphasized the need to develop the necessary skills to solve African problems and affirmed the Government of Rwanda commitment in supporting RSIF to achieve and maximize its impacts.

My greatest takeaway from co-organizing the virtual conference was the increased inclusion that a virtual event can foster. Registration information revealed that the pre-conference reached a wider range of participants, in part, due to the multi-lingual options that were used to disseminate conference information and the translation features that were available during the virtual pre-conference. Taking an intersectional look, it is even more important for groups traditionally underrepresented due to language barriers in online spaces to have a strong presence so they can be part of these important discussions. Virtual conferencing offers many options for organizers to produce a successful event. They provide tools to implement measures that allow for both healthy and essential engagements through the use of digital solutions that facilitate peer-to-peer learning as well as networking. The RSIF virtual pre-conference provided a platform to have conversations that build relationships and generate ideas that underpin progress on the issues we all care deeply about. The shift to the online space, however, was not at all easy.  Several components required different type of planning and more in-depth consideration, and online convening is a new experience for many attendees and organizers. The challenges notwithstanding, it is without a doubt that online convening’s has now been established as an essential part of work and life since the COVID-19 pandemic begun, and its likely to remain with us for a while.

Conclusion

After four months at RSIF, I have enormous faith in the RSIF program. I hope that by embedding a decolonial critical approach within its technical practice, education stakeholders within Africa and beyond can develop foresight and tactics that can better align research and technology development with local needs.

At this pivotal moment of African history it is counterproductive and evil to even mice words. We need to be active shapers in African technological and innovation advances and not mere observers.

The experience gained from this internship has given me the privilege of developing an experiential and diverse learning experience and having the opportunity to interact with different groups of people and to learn from their insights and endeavours. I thankful for that. This experience will propel my short and long-term goals for the urgent positive change of the society and myself.

My Internship experience

Posted on by Sakina Kahindi

By Juliet Mwaura, former RSIF Research and Innovation Grants Intern (July 2021-Dec 2021)

My experience while working with the Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) as a Research and Innovation Grants Intern was very positive. I had the most welcoming, helpful and supportive colleagues who were willing to guide me during the internship period. As I had not dealt with grants before, this internship taught me that adjusting to different situations in life is important and when you put in the work, a lot can be achieved. Gradually working with the team, I realized that they were very talented individuals, coming from diverse backgrounds and skillsets and were really passionate about the work they were doing. It didn’t take me long to get integrated into the team as everyone treated me as an equal contributor to the program even during chairing the team’s bi-weekly meetings. I hope that in future, I can find a team full of people just as encouraging and passionate about their work.

I got to learn a lot throughout the journey, through screening and eligibility checks of some of the projects such as Accelerating inclusive green growth through Agri-based digital innovation in West Africa (AGriDI), the PASET-RSIF MozSkills Subproject and Cohort 4 call for PhD Scholarship applications received, attending the Business Incubation Workshop for RSIF Innovation projects, Grants Independent Technical Committee (GITC) meetings held to select qualified projects to be funded, and virtually attending the 2nd Eastern Africa Bioeconomy Conference and RSIF Virtual Pre-Conference 2021. All these different aspects I was involved in helped me learn the different processes involved in ensuring that deliverables in the different components of providing Research and Innovation Grants are met.

After 6 months working together with the team, I have gained an enthusiasm for working on programs that promote and fund researchers to solve some of the complex problems that affect Africa especially in the areas of ICT including big data and artificial intelligence, food security and agri-business, minerals, mining and materials engineering, energy including renewables and climate change. I am particularly thankful to RSIF’s manager, for the confidence he had in me even as an intern to perform tasks, since interns are rarely involved in the day-to-day important activities in many organizations, unfortunately; and ensuring that we had a favourable working environment.

For future interns who will join the RSIF team, I would tell you; Always be curious and ask questions. Also, if you have a solution to something, say it. Show your creativity and don’t be afraid to take up new challenges. I’m so grateful for the opportunity and I look forward to what’s in store for me, perhaps in the future I will also apply for the RSIF PhD Scholarship and benefit from the great opportunity that has been created.

Meet one of RSIF’s first PhD Graduates

Posted on by Sakina Kahindi

Dr. Noel Gahamanyi was one of the two first RSIF Scholars to graduate with a Doctorate of Philosophy degree on Friday, 26th November 2021 during the 38th Graduation Ceremony of Sokoine University of Agriculture, one of the RSIF African Host Universities (AHUs) in Tanzania. The Rwandese national, who was among the 15 Cohort 1 RSIF PhD Scholarship recipients in 2018, had their research under the thematic area of Food Security and Agribusiness, on “Assessing the molecular epidemiology and antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of thermophilic Campylobacter species from human and animal faeces in South Korea and Tanzania.” In the interview below, Dr Gahamanyi shares his PhD journey.

Q. When did you defend your thesis (Dates)?

A. I defended my thesis on 9th November 2021.

Q. What did it feel like at the moment you defended your thesis and after?

A. I was eager to share my findings with the panellists and was confident in the experience I acquired throughout my four years of study.

Immediately after being told that the panel recommended that I be awarded the PhD degree that I registered for, I felt relaxed and thanked God for being with me. I may compare the feeling I had to the one a mother feels when holding her baby after delivery.

Q. What was your study about?

A. The title of my thesis was ‘‘Assessing the molecular epidemiology and antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of thermophilic Campylobacter species from human and animal faeces in South Korea and Tanzania”. For animals, I collected faeces from cattle and layer chicken.

Q. What does your PhD mean to you, your Country (Rwanda) and Africa?

A. Being a PhD holder means a lot to me since I have been in Academia for over six years. However, you cannot become a full Professor without having a PhD degree. The knowledge and skills acquired through my PhD journey are important to my career as an expert in Molecular epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance. Also, with a PhD degree, I can work as independent researcher and apply for grants which is difficult for MSc Holders.

Since Rwanda is a land-locked country with limited resources and a shortage of PhD holders in higher learning institutions, completing my PhD program in the thematic area of Food Security and Agribusiness will benefit my country, which is a knowledge-based economy. I recently published a review paper on ‘Ethnobotany, Ethnopharmacology, and Phytochemistry of Medicinal Plants Used for Treating Human Diarrheal Cases in Rwanda’. This paper can serve as baseline for anti-diarrheal drug discovery or further research in this field.

Africa as a continent already benefited from my PhD work as I published a systematic review on ‘Prevalence, risk factors, and antimicrobial resistance profiles of thermophilic Campylobacter species in humans and animals in Sub-Saharan Africa’ which has already been cited 16 times. Also, Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global threat and using One Health Approach, I hope to collaborate with other researchers to fight against misuse of existing antimicrobials and contribute to the achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) especially the SDG 3 related to Good Health and Wellbeing.

Q. What message do you have for the RSIF students who are still pursuing their PhD?

A. With commitment, dedication, and honesty, you will achieve your goals. You should not be over-ambitious and remember that flexibility is required if you want to be successful. Dropping an objective or replacing it with another one should not be a hindrance to your progress. Also, you must make sure that the relationship with the main supervisor is near perfect. Finally, a balanced life is key to success as no one can be busy with PhD work all the time (24/7). If you like soccer or movies, you can schedule your activities and spare some two hours for your hobbies. There is a Latin saying, ‘Si isti et iste, cur non ego?’ which means ‘If others can do it, why can’t I?’ If I managed to do it, you can also do the same or do greater.

Q. What did it feel like to receive the Best Postgraduate Student Research Award and to Graduate?

A. Sincerely speaking, receiving the Best Postgraduate Student Research Award from Sokoine University of Agriculture was a surprise to me because I knew what I did in research, but was not aware of the publications made by other graduands. I was delighted to receive the award, which meant my contribution to the scientific knowledge was recognized.

Graduating as a PhD holder was satisfying because I finally got what I went for. Having my PhD degree is like holding a master key in my hands. I also considered it an honour and would like the sponsors (Partnership for skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET), the Government of Rwanda and the Government of Korea) to know that their investment was not wasted.

Q. How did RSIF help you achieve your PhD?

A. The Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) contributed to the completion of my PhD program in different ways. First, RSIF organized various training sessions on Information literacy, Reference management and Leadership among others, which PhD scholars need in their writing. Second, a memorandum of understanding (MoU), through RSIF, was signed with the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) to provide a two-year internship at the Natural Product Informatics Research Center, KIST Gangneung Institute of Natural Products. Last, RSIF gave me an opportunity to become confident through various presentations like the one I made in Kigali during the 5th PASET forum.

Q. What are/ were your expected outcomes of the research?

A. The PhD thesis had four outcomes that serve as a baseline for future studies:

(i) the usefulness of molecular techniques in emerging Campylobacter detection

(ii) the molecular epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance of Campylobacter from layers

(iii) the importance of some natural products as alternative to conventional antimicrobials in the control of Campylobacter infections

(iv) Whole-genome sequencing data of Campylobacter from layer chicken for better understanding the Campylobacter epidemiology

Q. What are your hopes and vision for your career ahead/ what do you hope to work on?

A. I have been in Academia and like the profession of teaching, so there is a high probability that I will go back to Academia. In Rwanda, there is limited work on Campylobacter species and their antimicrobial resistance profiles despite being one of the major causative agents of diarrhoea. Therefore, I am planning to extend my research in Rwanda and know the extent of campylobacteriosis in both humans and animals. Sooner or later, I will go for a postdoctoral fellowship.

Q. You led the RSIF student association – any advice on how to kickstart the RSIF alumni association?

A. I enjoyed leading the RSIF student association. Pioneers always put in a lot of effort to lay the foundation for the next generations. Regarding the RSIF Alumni, we are the pioneers, and hope that once the majority of Cohort I scholars have graduated, we will have a sitting and adopt some terms and conditions that the RSIF alumni association will be based on. I would advise the PASET-RSIF team to strengthen the RSIF alumni association as it serves as an inspiration to continuing scholars; that the completion of the PhD program is possible despite the difficulties faced.

Q. What are your Scientific achievements?

A. I discovered new sequence types (STs) including ST-10645, ST-10647, ST-10648 that were isolated from layer chicken in South Korea. During the PhD journey, I managed to publish six papers in high impact factor journals. I suggested some medicinal plants and phytochemicals that can be used in the treatment/control of campylobacteriosis and/or diarrhoea in general. I also showed that layer chicken are neglected sources of Campylobacter species that are resistant to commonly used antimicrobials. The obtained strains are freely available in international databases and can be accessed by other researchers working in the same field. I attended various international conferences where I had an opportunity to disseminate the research findings by oral or poster presentations. I joined different scientific communities like the American Society of Microbiology (ASM) and the Young East African Health Research Scientists Forum (YEARS) which is part of networking. The details of my publications can be accessed via my ORCID.

Q. Anything you would like to say to PASET/RSIF-RCU (Regional Coordination Unit)

A. I want to congratulate PASET/RSIF-RCU for the great initiative of training a pool of scientists from Africa with a mission to find solutions to the problems our mother Africa is facing. It is almost impossible to undertake the PhD program without funding especially in most of the low and middle-income countries (LMICs). The journey, however, is long considering the 10,000 PhD scholars to be trained. Therefore, efforts are needed in recruiting more qualified African Host Universities (AHUs) and International Partner Institutions (IPIs). I would like also to take this opportunity to ask the PASET/RSIF-RCU to continue supporting the graduates through the Alumni or by providing postdoctoral fellowships all aimed at capacity building of researchers from Africa.

Other stories about Dr. Noel Gahamanyi

1. Life, study and research at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST): RSIF PhD Scholar Noel Gahamanyi’s story.

2. Then and now: How smart technologies are changing life in Africa

3. Understanding antimicrobial resistance and way forward

4. Dr Gahamanyi’s published manuscripts can be accessed by visiting RSIF Scholars’ Publications through the RSIF repository

RSIF scholarly publications and publication metrics

Posted on by RSIF PASET

RSIF Scholars have made remarkable contribution to the body of knowledge by publishing their research work in high quality peer reviewed journal articles and presenting papers in international conferences. To date, a total of 60 journal articles and conference papers have been published by the scholars in the 5 thematic areas: Climate Change (11); Energy including Renewables (4); Food security and Agribusiness (19); ICTs including Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (9); and Minerals, Mining and Materials Engineering (16).

There has been notable growth in number of publications from 0 in 2018 when the program started, 9 in 2019, 20 in 2020 to 30 in 2021 (October). Cohort 1 have published 37 peer-reviewed and conference papers, while Cohort 2 have published 22 papers. Total publications by Female Scholars are 16 at (27%) and 44 by Male (73%). All publications are available on RSIF digital repository: https://repository.rsif-paset.org

Publications metrics at a glance!

The research output is making impact as depicted by the number of articles downloads, views and citations from around the world.

RSIF Capacity building activities have been instrumental in supporting scholarly authorship. To mention a few, RSIF supports subscription access to 45,136 high quality e-resources (41,926 e-books and 3,210
e-journals) for the African Host Universities (AHUs). Usage of these resources is at over 350,000 hits. In addition, RSIF conducts biannual Information Literacy and Reference Management training workshops designed to help researchers, including PhD students, acquire intellectual, critical and logical skills to determine needed information; access or locate that information fast; evaluate the information and use effectively and efficiently the retrieved information. The workshops include engaging participants in practical activities in developing search strategies, using reference management tools and identifying credible publishing platforms. This has equipped the scholars with skills in conducting research and identifying credible and high impact journals to publish in.

Featured Publications and Scholars

1. Most popular publication

Sodedji Frejus Ariel Kpedetin, a cohort 1 scholar from Benin, is co-author of the article that has the highest number of citations, views and downloads. Sodedji is currently undertaking his PhD in Food security and agribusiness at University Felix Houphouët-Boigny, Côte d’Ivoire. He has written a blog on ‘I am on a mission to improve cowpea breeding in Africa’ published by RSIF.

Ayenan, M. A. T., Danquah, A., Hanson, P., Ampomah-Dwamena, C., Sodedji, F. A. K., Asante, I. K., & Danquah, E. Y. (2019). Accelerating Breeding for Heat Tolerance in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.): An integrated approach. In Agronomy (Vol. 9, Issue 11, p. 720). MDPI AG. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy9110720

                 19                                               2227                                                     4,963

Citations                                Abstract reviews                             Full text downloads

2. Scholar with highest number of publications
The scholar with the highest number of publications that have been published after joining RSIF program is Richard Kipyegon Koech, a cohort 1 scholar from Kenya. Richard is undertaking his PhD in Minerals, Mining and Materials Engineering at African University of Science and Technology (AUST). He has published 7 articles and also written a blog on ‘My dream is to mentor young scientists’ published on RSIF website. We feature 3 of his articles published in 2021.

  • Koech, R. K., Ichwani, R., Martin, J. L., Oyewole, D. O., Oyelade, O. v., Olanrewaju, Y. A., Sanni, D. M., Adeniji, S. A., Grimm, R. L., Bello, A., Oyewole, O. K., Ntsoenzok, E., & Soboyejo, W. O. (2021). A study of the effects of a thermally evaporated nanoscale CsBr layer on the optoelectronic properties and stability of formamidinium-rich perovskite solar cells. AIP Advances, 11(9), 095112. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0064398
  • Oyewole, D. O., Koech, R. K., Ichwani, R., Ahmed, R., Hinostroza Tamayo, J., Adeniji, S. A., Cromwell, J., Colin Ulloa, E., Oyewole, O. K., Agyei-Tuffour, B., Titova, L. v., Burnham, N. A., & Soboyejo, W. O. (2021). Annealing effects on interdiffusion in layered FA-rich perovskite solar cells. AIP Advances, 11(6), 065327. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0046205
  • Adeniji, S. A., Cromwell, J., Oyewole, D. O., Oyelade, O. v., Koech, R. K., Sanni, D. M., Oyewole, O. K., Babatope, B., & Soboyejo, W. O. (2021). Pressure-assisted fabrication of perovskite light emitting devices. AIP Advances, 11(2), 025112. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0035953

3.Most recent publication

Abdulkadir, M., Kajero, O. T., Olarinoye, F. O., Udebhulu, D. O., Zhao, D., Aliyu, A. M., & Al-Sarkhi, A. (2021). Investigating the Behaviour of Air–Water Upward and Downward Flows: Are You Seeing What I Am Seeing? Energies 2021, Vol. 14, Page 7071, 14(21), 7071. https://doi.org/10.3390/EN14217071

Meet RSIF’s first PhD Graduate

Posted on by Maureen Agena

Dr. Jean Nepomuscene Hakizimana, a Rwandese national who was among the 15 Cohort 1 RSIF PhD Scholarship recipients in 2018, successfully defended his PhD thesis on 30th September 2021 at Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), one of the RSIF African Host Universities (AHUs) in Tanzania. Dr Hakizimana is RSIF’s very first PhD Graduate. His research, under the thematic area of Food Security and Agribusiness, was on the “Determination of the genetic variation and epidemiology of African swine fever virus in selected countries of eastern and southern Africa”. Dr. Hakizimana has been offered a postdoctoral fellow position at Sokoine University of Agriculture which he is considering as an opportunity to start his research career. In the interview below, Hakizimana shares his PhD journey.

 

Q. What was your PhD study about?

A. The title of my Ph.D. thesis is “Determination of the genetic variation and epidemiology of African swine fever virus in selected countries of eastern and southern Africa”. A multidisplinary approach combining viral genomics, bioinformatics and social sciences was used to elucidate the socio-economic impact, transmission dynamics, genetic and antigenic diversity of African swine fever virus (ASFV) in eastern and southern Africa. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies allowed me to report the first complete genome sequences of ASFV in Malawi and Burundi, advancing our understanding of viral transmission, evolution, diversity and pathogenicity in eastern and southern Africa. A high ASFV genotypic diversity was observed and after phylogeographic analysis, several transboundary transmission events of the virus were observed. These findings call for a concerted regional and international effort to control the spread of ASFV to improve nutritional and food security, and livelihoods. Four manuscripts from my Ph.D. research have been published in high impact international peer-reviewed journals, including Viruses (Impact factor of 5.048, https://doi.org/10.3390/v13020306), Frontiers in Veterinary Sciences (impact factor of 2.245, https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2020.578474), BMC Veterinary Research (impact factor of 2.179, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-020-02536-8) and Tropical Animal Health and Production (Impact factor of 1.681, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-021-02877-y).

Q. You defended your PhD thesis on 30th September 2021, what did that moment feel like?

A. During my defence, I fully concentrated on my research work and sharing my accumulated knowledge on the topic with members of the Viva Voce examination panel. After the successful defence, it was a moment of immense happiness for the achieved milestones and for all the effort over the years. It reminded me of all people who supported me during my study to whom I am extremely grateful. In that moment, I realized that it was actually finished. I am most grateful to PASET and my government for supporting my PhD studies.

Q. After your successful defense, you were offered a postdoctoral fellow position to continue doing your research. What does that mean to you?

A. It is very exciting because it is an opportunity to further my research on viral diseases within a convivial scientific research environment. I will continue benefiting from the expertise of the Community of Practice for Viral Diseases of Food Security and Livelihood Importance at the Southern African Centre for Infectious Disease Surveillance (SACIDS Foundation for One Health) of the Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA). The Community of Practice approach allows working with senior, peer and junior researchers from within Africa and Europe. The advantage of this platform, is that it allows collaborative research in a multi-displinary team of world-class scientists, allowing the scholar to be scientifically well equipped and ready to embark on his journey as an independent researcher and scientist. However, I wish to explore how my research and experience can more directly benefit my country.

Q. As a Rwandese, does acquiring this PhD mean anything to your Country?

A. The acquired expertise in genomics of transboundary animal diseases will be very useful to my country Rwanda and to the whole of Africa. The importance of genomic surveillance of viral epidemics has been particularly evidenced during the current COVID-19 pandemic. I am now an expert in pathogen metagenomics and bioinformatics. These skills are necessary for early detection and identification of pathogens, and a prerequisite to containing viral epidemics before they become unmanageable.

Q. What message do you have for the hundreds of RSIF scholars who are still pursuing their PhD studies?

A. Do not get discouraged by challenges on the Ph.D. journey, it is part of the training. By working hard, perseverance and the grace of God, you will overcome these challenges and emerge successful.

Q. Having successfully completed your PhD studies, share with us the general impression of your experience as a RSIF scholar.

A. After successfully defending my Ph.D., I consider RSIF as the best Ph.D. training program in Africa because it is an Africa-led program where Africans search for solutions to the most pressing challenges facing our continent. The sandwich component of the program allowing scholars to get access to more advanced infrastructures and expertise at an International Partner Institution (IPI) allows African researchers to build international scientific networks and obtain specialized training. This was evident during my Ph.D. where I worked with top researchers in Tanzania, Rwanda and from Belgium. In addition, the staff of RSIF Regional Coordination Unit at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) were very supportive during my studies.

Q. How does your current knowledge gained compare to what you imagined it would be like going into your studies?

A. The knowledge gained during my Ph.D. studies met my expectations. I have acquired specialized skills in pathogen metagenomics and bioinformatics along with the required international scientific network necessary for my professional and personal development. After a successful defence of my Ph.D., I am scientifically fully equipped to thrive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution era and ready to contribute to containing viral epidemics in Africa.

Other stories about Dr. Jean Nepomuscene Hakizimana

  1. I will contribute to the fight against infectious diseases in Africa https://www.rsif-paset.org/i-will-contribute-to-the-fight-against-infectious-diseases-in-africa/
  2. One step to 10,000 http://www.icipe.org/news/one-step-10000
  3. Dr Hakizimana’s published manuscripts can be accessed by visiting RSIF Scholars’ Publications through the RSIF repository

 

Two International Partner Institutions join Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF)

Posted on by Sakina Kahindi

Two more International Institutions have  joined the Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) as International Partner Institutions (IPIs), making it five IPIs since the start of 2021 and bringing the new over total to 19 .

RSIF IPIs are advanced universities, research institutes/centers or companies (public or private) that are willing and competent to offer research internship opportunities for RSIF PhD Scholars from Africa studying at universities in Africa Host Universities (AHUs). Advanced/international research centers and civil society partners and private sector firms in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), and universities in South Africa, may also qualify as IPIs. Launched in 2017, RSIF is the flagship program for the Partnership for skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET), an African-led initiative which aims to build competencies and skills to support growth of key economic sectors that support Africa’s socio-economic transformation spanning upper-secondary level, technical, vocational education and training (TVET), postgraduate education and postdoctoral research and mentorship.

RSIF supports PhD students, post-doctoral scientists and universities in SSA to establish high quality training, research and innovation environments and to develop institutional capacity for the benefit of the whole region. The two new partner institutions will host PhD students in the competitive call expected to open soon.

University of Lisbon  (ULisboa), the largest, most prestigious university in Portugal and one of Europe’s leading universities, is a public research university located in Lisbon. ULisboa brings together various areas of knowledge and has a privileged position for facilitating the contemporary evolution of science, technology, arts and humanities. The quality of teaching, research, innovation and culture of ULisboa is attracting an ever-increasing amount of talent from around the world.

University of Michigan (U-M) is the oldest, public comprehensive research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan with a mission to serve the people of the State of Michigan and the world through pre-eminence in creating, communicating, preserving and applying knowledge, art and academic values and in developing leaders and citizens who will challenge the present and enrich the future. U-M has ranked first among public universities in the United States of America in terms of research expenditures at least since 2010 and has strength in research and training in all the PASET focus areas. The African Studies Center (ASC) at U-M was founded in 2008 to serve as the conduit for U-M’s Africa focused research, teaching, partnerships and programming.

The other IPIs in the program include the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), Ghent University, The higher national school of mines of Albi-Carmaux (Institut Mines-Télécom (IMT), Institutes of Green-bio Science & Technology – Seoul National University (GBST-SNU), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT), Maastricht University (MU), Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), Telecom SudParis, The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), The Seoul National University Global Research & Development and Business Center (GRC), University of Greenwich, University of Pretoria (UP), Virginia Tech and Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)

This increase in the number of partner institutions is a big step towards achieving one of the program’s objectives, which is to strengthen the institutional capacity for quality and sustainable doctoral training, research and innovation in transformative technologies in sub-Saharan Africa by incorporating sandwich training options. The program also aims to build research excellence in ASET fields by developing the capacity for PhD training and undertaking applied research and innovation in partnership with a network of renowned IPIs and strengthen research capacity regionwide by prioritizing the scholarships to African faculty that lack PhD training.

The number of RSIF scholars is set to triple from that planned in the original pilot project to reach close to 300 by early 2022.  Through PASET-RSIF the cost of PhD training is significantly lowered, while also reducing inbreeding in national universities since PhD training will be done in other African universities and international partner institutions. By working closely with academic institutions, relevant investors and governments and other stakeholders within sub-Saharan Africa; specialized knowledge will be integrated in the region and transferred to the future generation. Recent partnerships take into account the language diversity in the growing body of RSIF doctoral students, as more governments in Francophone Western Africa and Lusophone Southern Africa have contributed to RSIF.

RSIF aims to support doctoral training and post-doctoral research and innovation in the five priority economic sectors for growth and development across Sub- Saharan Africa. The program uses scholarships together with research and innovation grants that improve the quality and relevance of the PhD programs to guarantee continuity and sustainability of research and innovations once the scholars graduate. RSIF is currently funded by African governments, the World Bank, the Government of Korea, and the European Union through the ACP Innovation Fund and managed by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe), Nairobi, Kenya, as the RSIF Regional Coordinating Unit (RCU). More funders and partners are invited to join the first Africa-led Pan-African science fund.

Benefits to RSIF Contributing Governments

Posted on by RSIF PASET

RSIF is unique in being an African government-led science fund for Africa. The program, which was initiated in 2015 has supported over 180 PhD students and provided 14 research and innovation grants through African ‘Host’ Universities. As contributors to RSIF, African governments benefit in more ways than through the cost-effective training of its doctoral students.

Countries also benefit from efficient centralized administration of the scholarship and other grants, support for the RSIF scholars to ensure that they complete on time, as well as regular monitoring reports on the progress of their students. The pooling of funds, the highly competitive selection of host universities, international partners and students, and the efficient administration of the fund enhances the value and increases the benefits.

African countries’ participation in RSIF benefits their entire higher education, science and innovation ecosystem. All RSIF scholars will undergo high quality doctoral training in competitively selected SSA universities partnered with international universities, with study abroad for part of the time, at a fraction of the cost of sending students abroad for a full time PhD.  On successful completion of the PhD, the students will be eligible for research and innovation grants.

Highly Skilled Human Capital as a Driver for the African Union Agenda 2063 and National Development Plans

The rationale for RSIF is that Africa requires world class scientists in priority thematic disciplines that are relevant to national economic growth across sub-Saharan Africa. Some of these areas include orphaned research areas such as mining, minerals and materials science, energy and information and communication technology among others. This African led program aims to support the training of African innovators and leaders, with focus on women and faculty, to be able to strengthen the capacity of universities to train at the doctoral level and undertake innovative and impactful research for the future needs of the continent and the participating countries.

Read more in RSIF Country Reports 2021 through the RSIF Repository

RSIF is owned and led by African governments through PASET and icipe is the RSIF Regional Coordination Unit.

RSIF is designed for sustainability and has two components: (i) the General Fund and (ii) the Permanent or Endowment Fund, with proceeds to capitalize the general fund.  Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda and Senegal have made or are at the final stages of making contributions to PASET RSIF, in addition to the Government of Korea, the ACP Innovation Fund of the European Union and the World Bank, bringing funds to US$ 51.7 million.

Country contributions have been earmarked to doctoral scholarships, and in some cases to support research and innovation projects, aligned with national needs. The potential of African countries’ innovative expansion due to investment in RSIF is multiplied when leveraged by the funds through matching support from various donors, including the Government of Korea, international partner institutions and others.

More importantly, RSIF aims to create a sustainable vehicle for supporting science, technology and innovation capacity building through a permanent fund that is being established by the governments. Many African governments are interested to be part of this.

Find out more

Four African universities join Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF)

Posted on by Sakina Kahindi

 

Four more universities have joined the Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) as African Host Universities (AHUs), bringing the new total to 15. RSIF AHUs are universities or research institutes/centres (e.g. Africa Centers of Excellence) in sub-Saharan Africa that offer a strong PhD program in one of the priority thematic areas. Launched in 2017, RSIF is the flagship program for the Partnership for skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET), an African-led initiative with the goal of strengthening skills in the Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (ASET) to further socio-economic transformation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

RSIF focuses on transformative technologies that have a far-reaching positive impact on society. It supports PhD students, post-doctoral scientists and universities in SSA to establish high quality training, research and innovation environments and to develop institutional capacity for the benefit of the whole region. The four new RSIF host universities will host PhD students in RSIF’s fourth cohort, for which the competitive call for PhD scholarships is currently open until 30 September 2021.

2iE – International Institute of Water and Environmental Engineering is an international institute for education and research committed to covering areas of water, environment, energy, civil engineering, mining and managerial sciences through training of highly qualified and innovative entrepreneurial engineers in Africa. Located in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, the selected PhD program at 2iE is in Science and Technology of Water, Energy and Environment, in the African Centre of Excellence for Training and Research in Water and Environment Sciences and Technologies in West Africa (CEA-IMPACT 2iE).

Haramaya University  is a pre-eminent institution of higher learning in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia that have pioneered the field of agricultural sciences and the provisioning of the tripartite functions of education, research, and extension. The selected PhD programme at HU is in Climate Smart Agriculture and Biodiversity Conservation, under the Africa Center of Excellence for Climate Smart Agriculture and Biodiversity Conservation (ACE Climate SABC).

Makerere University (MAK), located in Kampala, Uganda, is one of the oldest and most prestigious English Universities in Africa, having been established in 1922 as a humble technical school. Committed to providing transformative and innovative teaching, learning and research responsive to dynamic national and global needs, the selected PhD programme at MU is in Plant Breeding and Biotechnology, within the Makerere University Regional Centre for Crop Improvement (MaRCCI).

The University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC) is the principal public university in the west African country of Benin. Composed of 19 institutions and six campuses, the selected PhD program is in Information and Communication Technologies of the Institute of Mathematics and Physical Sciences, African Centre of Excellence in Mathematical Sciences, IT and applications (SMIA).

Competitively selected by an independent, international panel of experts and endorsed by the PASET Executive Board, the other AHUs in the program include the African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Kenyatta University (KU) and The Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) in the Minerals, mining and materials engineering thematic area; Bayero University Kano (BUK), and University Félix Houphouët-Boigny (U-FHB) in the Climate change thematic area; University of Nairobi (UoN) and University of Port Harcourt in the Energy including renewables thematic area; Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) and University of Ghana (UG) in the Food security and agribusiness thematic area; University of Gaston Berger (UGB) and University of Rwanda (UR) in the ICTs including big data and artificial intelligence thematic area.

This increase in the number of host universities is a big step towards achieving one of the program’s objectives, which is to build African university capacity to provide relevant ASET training and to ensure continued investment in scaling up the ASET education and workforce by incorporating sandwich training options. The program also aims to build research excellence in ASET fields by developing the capacity for PhD training and undertaking applied research and innovation in partnership with a network of renowned International Partner Universities (IPIs) and strengthen research capacity regionwide by prioritizing the scholarships to African faculty that lack PhD training.

RSIF aims to support doctoral training and post-doctoral research and innovation in the five priority economic sectors for growth and development across Sub- Saharan Africa. The program uses scholarships together with research and innovation grants that improve the quality and relevance of the PhD programs to guarantee continuity and sustainability of research and innovations once the scholars graduate. RSIF is currently funded by African governments, the World Bank, the Government of Korea, and the European Union through the ACP Innovation Fund and managed by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe), Nairobi, Kenya, as the RSIF Regional Coordinating Unit (RCU). More funders and partners are invited to join the first Africa-led Pan-African science fund.

 

RSIF Cohort lll Orientation week was a good start for my PhD Journey

Posted on by RSIF PASET

By Hellen Ngunya Mutua

The eagerly awaited session since the reception of my congratulatory note from Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) was finally at hand. Our orientation as Cohort lll recipients of the RSIF coveted PhD scholarships. My name is Hellen Ngunya Mutua, a Kenyan whose RSIF host University is University of Nairobi, Kenya.

The RSIF Cohort III scholar’s orientation took place from 28th June to 2nd July 2021. I thank God and the RSIF team for granting me an opportunity to be among the 98 scholars who attended the online weeklong orientation program via zoom. Scholars from Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Senegal, Cote d’lvore and Ghana Host Universities converged online for the orientation training and different facilitators took up active roles in running their assigned tasks in training the scholars.

It was my pleasure to virtually meet Dr Moses Osiru, the Manager, Regional Coordination Unit (RCU) of the Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF), who welcomed the scholars and gave information about icipe’s. The background, location, and operations. I discovered the great efforts that RSIF puts in its scholars when Fatoumata Thiam, a Senegalese cohort I beneficiary, narrated her academic journey. Her story encouraged me to always aim high and confirmed to me that everything is possible in academics, if you are determined, humble, work hard, and completely trust in God.

Listening to Ms. Ruth Charo the Education Specialist from the World bank made me realize that a high-quality doctorate degree was expected from me after 4 years of its pursuit. I thought of the numerous challenges affecting the African community that awaited solutions from many scholars, including myself. The orientation session marked the beginning of a marvelous journey towards success, as stated by Prof. Goolam Mohamdbhai and Prof. Aminata Sall Diallo of PASET Executive Board. Their words of encouragement assured me that I would soon achieve a PhD in Physics and inspired me to soon become a professor in Physics.

I also met people that I have always admired like Mr. Boniface Nyagah, who was always time conscious and ensured all activities went on as scheduled. He patiently went through the chats after every presentation while addressing all the issues raised by the scholars. I would like to congratulate Mr. Nyagah for managing the session well, despite scholars asking questions in no particular order. I would also like to thank Ms. Elizabeth Murimi, for being available to address the scholars’ concerns in a timely fashion, as our issues and questions about the scholarship were clarified and answered.

It was eye opening listening to Dr. Rob Skilton, Dr Daisy Salif, Dr. Henri Tonnang and Ms. Mary Ngure, as they all guided us on how to carry out our PhD research work. Because of their thorough presentations, I now have all the dos and don’ts at my fingertips. Some of the issues discussed at length were research integrity and ethics, research methods and statistics, research data management, workflow and information literacy, all key in the success of our research work. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the RSIF team was not only concerned about our academic achievement but also our safety. This was demonstrated by the eye-opening discussion we had with Ms. Pamela Tuiyott on sexual violence and the need to always be safe because everyone is vulnerable.

Listening to different African Host Universities’ (AHU) coordinators gave scholars a good guide on what awaits them in their respective universities. The fear and anxiety we previously had, begun to fade away and was replaced with excitement. The possibility of earning a successful PhD was clearly tabled by Prof. Baldwyn Torto together with Ms. Sylvia Maina and Emmanuel Effah’s shared experiences. I learnt that the journey we were about to begin as scholars would have its ups and downs, and therefore called for perseverance to reach desired destinations. I also learnt the importance of communicating my research findings and how to efficiently execute it through Ms. Maureen Agena and Ms. Sakina Kahindi’s presentations. I appreciate Ms. Safaa El- Kogali for sharing her story on her desire to thrive amidst many challenges as a woman.

With support from different stakeholders sponsoring my PhD program, I have concrete reasons to shine in my academics as I promise to work hard and achieve a high-quality PhD.

 

Hellen Ngunya Mutua, a Kenyan by nationality is one of the 102 recipients of a RSIF PhD scholarship in Cohort lll.  She will study Physics at the University of Nairobi in Kenya.

Email: hellenngunya@gmail.com