The Next Einstein Forum (NEF) on Thursday announced its second Ambassadors Class, 45 scientists and tech champions across Africa, all under 42 years of age, who are solving Africa’s and the world’s challenges.
An initiative of the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) in partnership with the Robert Bosch Stiftung, the NEF will hold its second global forum for science in Kigali, Rwanda, under the patronage of H.E. President Paul Kagame on 26-28 March 2018.
Central to the NEF’s vision of propelling Africa onto the global scientific stage, the NEF Ambassadors will attend the NEF Global Gathering in Kigali, connect with each other and scientists from across the world. While growing their own careers through mentorship and collaborations offered by a growing network of partners, NEF Ambassadors drive the NEF’s local public engagement activities like the NEF Africa Science Week, and will help craft an exciting and high impact forum.
From Uganda, Joanitah N Nalubega (Uganda) was named among the champions of science and technology across Africa.
She’s an industrial chemist, with a deep passion for technology, currently working to deploy solutions for the health sector using technology in Uganda.
According to the Next Einstein Forum, Joanitah is a founding partner of a fellowship of creatives called Kafunda Kreative which seeks to build the capacity of young creatives using emerging technologies, to create collaborative spaces, opportunities and skilling to push boundaries in their different trades and has worked as a website developer and content manager at Node Six and a content editor for PC Tech Magazine.
Also, she is a Leo Africa Institute’s Young and Emerging Leaders Project (YELP) fellow, 2016/17. In 2017, Joanitah took part in developing, and deploying a web and mobile system, to assist in the decision making process in drug supply management by creating real-time visibility of the demand, supply and utilization of essential medicine and health supplies in ten health facilities in Bukedea district in Eastern Uganda.
Together with her team, she developed a solution with support from UNFPA, Outbox Hub and UKAID through a four months’ program during which she attended intense boot camps related to company incorporation, design of systems, customer development and other business development principles.
She has managed to mobilize resources worth $10,000 to ably support her team in defining the problem, designing the solution, coordinate stakeholders and all engagements with them, as well as carry out financial management.
Currently, she is working to deploy the solution in two other districts following feedback and lessons learned from monitoring the operations of the pilot.
NEF Ambassadors are the NEF’s young science and technology champions, one from each African country. NEF Ambassadors, who are all under 42 years, drive the NEF’s local public engagement activities while growing their own careers through the NEF’s partnerships that offer opportunities for mentorship and collaborations with established researchers.
