Ideas Matter Research Fellowships for West African Scholars
The West African Research Association, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, is pleased to announce awardees for the Ideas Matter Fellowship Program. This is the second year of this fellowship, which supports the work of doctoral students whose dissertation research focuses on women, technology or entrepreneurship and who are based in West African institutions. In this second competition, we received 65 eligible applications from graduate students representing ten West African countries and fields as diverse as biology, agronomy, political science, medicine, public health, chemistry, and pharmacy. Their research seeks to solve many of the most trenchant health and economic challenges facing Africa today. This year, we received a larger number of Anglophone to francophone applicants. Nearly half of the applicants this time around were young women, a 16% increase from last year, attesting to the growing role of women in science and technology. The three candidates selected from this rich trove of applications are:
Mrs. Isata Kamanda (Sierra Leone, Agricultural Research Institute) Crop Improvement
Involving women in participatory selection of biofortified cassava germplasm in Sierra Leone
According to the W.H.O., more than 40% of pregnant women, lactating mothers and preschool children have moderate to severe Vitamin A Deficiency (VAD), despite efforts the government has made to import other vitamin sources, which have proven ineffective and unsustainable. Cassava (also known as manioc), is a popular food staple in Sierra Leone, and biofortified germplasm offer a potential solution to VAD. Mrs. Kamanda’s research will investigate a means to popularize biofortified cassava by involving rural women in the selection process of favorable biofortified cassava germplasm.
Ms. Amoin Gervaise Kouame (Côte d’Ivoire, University Nangui Abrogoua) Natural Sciences
Menopause in Côte d’Ivoire: knowledge of traditional methods of treatment and evaluation of their efficiency
Over 22% of women over 40 years of age experience problems from menopause, including cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Current hormonal treatments are expensive and cause negative side effects. Ms. Kouame’s research will determine and test local Ivoirian plants rich in phytoestrogen, which is an effective treatment against the health complications of menopause.
Mr. Yao Manu Seshie (Burkina Faso, Fondation 2iE) Electric, Energy, and Industrial Engineering
Experimental studies of the solar concentration plant CSP4Africa
The ORC turbine machine is utilized in solar plants to transform heat to electricity. Currently, it is only available through a specialized enterprise. It is essential to allowing the utilization of solar energy. Mr, Seshie’s research aims to test different the ORC machine in different dimensions with the goal of creating a smaller, more efficient, and more affordable model that will allow solar energy to be more accessible to lower income populations throughout West Africa.
