Adeyemi is an Associate Professor at the Indigenous Knowledge Systems Centre, North West University, South Africa. He obtained a PhD (Botany, 2013) and MSc (Ethnobotany cum laude, 2010) from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa while his BSc (Hons in Botany, 2006) degree was from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Adeyemi’s research focuses on the documentation, scientific validation, commercialization and conservation of African floras especially those with medicinal, horticultural and nutritional potential. His major goal is to drive impactful research that influence policy for economic gains, health benefits environmental sustainability for stakeholders and the wider community at large. He is actively involved in capacity building through postgraduate training and transfer of skills. He has trained more than 10 MSc and PhD students and has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed articles.

Adeyemi is a registered Professional Natural Scientist with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP) and member of professional bodies such as the International Society for Ethnopharmacology (ISE) and South African Association of Botanists (SAAB). He is currently an associate editor for three international journals and frequently served as a reviewer for several journals and funding organizations.

In recognition of his contribution to science, Adeyemi is a fellow of the African Science Leadership Programme (ASLP, 2018), and Exco member, South African Young Academy of Science (SAYAS, 2019) and Affiliate of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS, 2020-2024). He is also recognised as a young promising researcher (Y-rated) by the National Research Foundation, South Africa.

I am currently working as a professor associate at the department of Parasitology-Mycology of Cheikh Anta Diop University and of Aristide le Dantec university hospital where I perform my research activities. This academic position is combined with a senior biologist position focusing on the diagnosis of parasitic and fungal infections.

I have been working as senior scientific officer (post-doctoral attachment) within the Malaria Unit of the Laboratory of Parasitology-Mycology at UCAD with the collaboration of Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) specifically working on malaria immunity and genomics.

My PhD focused on the humoral response against malaria and was funded by the Fogarty Scholar program and the HSPH.

My research activities are focused mainly on malaria in the context of elimination, working in implementing new strategies in pre-elimination and elimination setting areas in Sénégal. Our team works closely with the NMCP to address relevant research questions for malarial control and elimination, using genomic and serologic data to assess or implement the programme’s  interventions across the country.

Since January 2020, I am a Crick African Network Career Accelerator awardee, I will be working the next two years with the MRC and the crick institute colleagues into developing new strategies for malaria elimination in the Senegambia region.

Beside my work for malaria, I am also interested into the fever of unknown origin caused by other pathogens such as opportunistic fungi and parasites and implementing diagnostic tools into the hospitals for their diagnostic.

Dr Enitome Bafor is a lecturer at the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Benin, Nigeria and currently a postdoctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute/National Institutes of Health, USA. She received her PhD from the University of Strathclyde, UK under scholarship from the then Education Trust Fund, Nigeria and had done a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Liverpool, UK with a Grant from the Society for Reproductive Investigation, USA. Her research interests involve understanding the mechanisms and treatments for ovarian and uterine disorders which has so far led to the discovery of new drug mechanisms as well as new potential drugs. Some of her other achievements include: research grants in 2016 and 2019 from The World Academy of Science to investigate new therapies from tropical plants for uterine contractility disorders, and a research grant from the Society for Reproductive Investigation and Bayer Pharmaceuticals to investigate new therapeutic approaches for polycystic ovarian syndrome. Some of her awards include Gro Brundtland Award 2018 For Women in Sustainable Development, Research advocacy award by Research4life Elsevier, Nigerian Young Scientist Prize in Health Sciences 2017 by the Nigerian Young Academy, Advisory mentor to the Queen’s Young leaders 2018, Runner up Inspiring Champions of Science 2019 by Johnson & Johnson USA and Best Research Health Category University of Strathclyde, UK 2013. Some of her fellowships include DAAD-International Deans Fellowship and the Excell Fellowship by the African Research Excellence Fund (AREF). She has also published widely in several reputable journals and has contributed to five book chapters.

I am a Ghanaian immunologist with a broad interest in investigating immune function among African populations in order to better address immunopathology associated with infectious and non-infectious diseases among these populations. Following the completion of a PhD at Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, my post-doctoral research projects conducted at the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Programme in Kenya and subsequently at the Francis Crick Institute in London, have focused on understanding the immunological mechanisms by which naturally acquired immunity to Malaria is acquired and maintained. I am currently expanding upon this work in my own research group at the West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP) at the University of Ghana where I am a Research Fellow. I am passionate about developing sustainable research infrastructure and human capacity on the continent- especially leveraging African expertise in the diaspora to strengthen local academic institutions. In line with this, I have been appointed as the Head of Advancement at WACCBIP and also lead the African Science Initiative- an online networking platform for young African scientists. I am also currently a Crick Africa Network fellow and a member of the eLife Early Career Advisory Group.

Dr Burmen holds a Bachelors’ degree in Human Medicine and Surgery, a Masters’ Degree in Public Health and a doctorate in Public Health. Dr. Burmen is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Cape Town funded by CIPHER & SANTHE. Dr Burmen is currently focused on standardizing exposure and outcome definitions for children who are HIV-exposed and uninfected.

Dr Burmen has over 15 years’ experience in HIV clinical, programmatic and research fields and an interest in HIV Implementation science and clinical, research, science policy and personal mentorship. She has authored 30 publications and made 25 international conference presentations with the support different grants. She has received international recognition awards for innovations in clinical practice, policy and research mentorship focused on HIV and Tuberculosis: Mohan Lumba ‘Young Scientist Award’ for immense contribution to improve lung health in Kenya; American Journal of Experts Gold Medal Researcher for contributing to research and the international community; African Society of Laboratory’s Medicine Best laboratory Clinician Champion (honorable mention) for promoting the clinician-laboratory interface and influencing laboratory policy development; AuthorAid’s mentor of the year for volunteer research mentoring services; TWAS Abdool Karim Prize for making a significant contribution to her field in resource limited settings; 2018’s Gro Brundtland Award for professional performance in sustainable public health; Face of Science Kenya as a contributor to diverse scientific work in Kenya, Science and Technology for Society (STS) Young leader as an outstanding young leader; is a IAP-NIH Policy fellow and African Science Leadership Program fellow and a nominee for the Obada Prize for innovative and interdisciplinary research that cuts across traditional boundaries and paradigms and for membership in the World Data Science Committee.

Dr Michael M. Chipeta is a Plant Breeder and a Lecturer in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), Malawi. He holds a PhD in Plant Breeding from the University of Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa. Dr Chipeta is a 2018 Norman E. Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellow at the University of Tennessee, USA and a Fellow of the African Science Leadership Programme. He is the pioneer of the first Bambara Groundnut Breeding Programme in Malawi and his research is focused on selection and development of high yielding, nutritionally rich and stable Bambara groundnut varieties for improved food and nutrition security in Malawi. He also researches on genome editing and biosafety of transgenic plants to improve agricultural productivity, enhance economic development and contribute to food security in Malawi.

Dr Sara is an Associate Professor of Mathematics in the Faculty of Engineering, The British University in Egypt. She earned her PhD from the Faculty of Science, Helwan University in 2013. In 2014, she was awarded The Best PhD Thesis in Applied Mathematics from the Egyptian Mathematical Society. She received the Fulbright Scholar award to conduct her research in the University of California Riverside and Caltech in 2015-2016. She was then awarded the BUE Best Publication award in 2017-2018. Dr Sara has also been granted the TWAS-UNESCO Associateship to visit the Instituto de Matemáticas, UNAM, in summer 2017 and in 2019. She has also been nominated by The World Academy of Sciences to attend The Future Leaders Programme and the STS forum by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science in 2018. She has been selected by the Fundación de Mujeres Por Africa for a fellowship program at the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Madrid in 2020. She is further an international journal reviewer to many journals, a member in the editorial board of some peer reviewed journals, and a member in the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing Countries, a member in the Egyptian Mathematical Society, and a member in the International Society of Muslim Women in Science. Dr Sara is currently focusing on solving problems of peristaltic transport that tackle bio-nanofluids inside the human body. She believes that “As for everything else, so for a mathematical theory: beauty can be perceived but not explained” Arthur Cayley.

Egeru Anthony (PhD) is a Senior Lecturer at Makerere University. He also serves as Programme Manager, Training and Community Development at the RUFORUM Secretariat. He previously served as Acting Deputy Executive Secretary-Programme Development and Implementation, Regional Programme Coordinator and Assistant Grants Manager at RUFORUM Secretariat. He started his career as a secondary school teacher at Merryland High School, Entebbe. Anthony is a dynamic and distinguished emerging researcher with a Research Gate Score of 14.79 and h-index of 8.0 and 14,360 Research Gate reads, 16,500 reads and reviews in Academia and Scopus h-index 6. Anthony has multi-faceted experience in research including in Systems Ecology with a focus on management of dryland ecosystems, early warning system, rangeland health monitoring, land use planning, pastoral livelihoods, agro-forestry systems, climate change, adaptation and resilience programming and analysis, development processes-especially participatory analysis and curriculum design and development. Anthony’s current engagement is facilitating the transformation of African agricultural universities centered at the promotion of teaching, learning and research through innovative approaches including community action research, community engagement and agribusiness and entrepreneurship approached from a problem based learning perspective. Anthony is passionate about strengthening the educational value chain in particular creating a greater linkage between universities and TVET institutions for skills enhancement as a mechanism to responding to Africa’s youth unemployment challenge but most importantly responding to the rising educational inequalities and exclusionism in an environment where education is recoganised as a strong enabler of economic growth and out of poverty escape mechanism.

Dr Nowsheen Goonoo is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Biomaterials, Drug Delivery and Nanotechnology Unit, Centre for Biomedical and Biomaterials Research (CBBR), University of Mauritius, Mauritius. She obtained her PhD in 2015 through joint supervision between the University of Mauritius and University of Memphis, USA. She received a Georg Forster Fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in 2016 to conduct postdoctoral research at the University of Siegen, Germany. Following her successful research stay in Germany, she was awarded the Humboldt Return Fellowship which allowed her to re-integrate her home institution in Mauritius. She was awarded the L’Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science Fellowship (Sub-Saharan Africa Region) in 2019 for her research on the development of novel materials for the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers.

Dr Goonoo is currently focusing on the development of high-value added materials using locally available resources such as seaweeds for the treatment of burns, ulcers, and bone defects. Dr Goonoo has co-authored 25 peer reviewed publications (2019) including book chapters in the fields of polymers, drug delivery and tissue engineering in internationally renowned journals.

She has also presented her research at several national and international conferences. She serves as a reviewer for various international journals. She is also involved in various collaborative projects on biomaterials for improved health care. She is actively involved in community outreach activities with the aim of promoting science education among secondary school students especially girls and to guide them on future career choice

Dr Amin Hassan is a postdoctoral research scientist at the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme in Kilifi, Kenya. He holds an M.Sc. in Epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (University of London) and a PhD from the faculty of Medicine (University of Amsterdam). Dr Hassan has more than 10 years of research experience on the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa. His research interests revolve around understanding drivers of HIV transmission and antiretroviral treatment responses. Specifically, Dr Hassan is interested in applying phylogenetic tools to understand origin, introduction and spread of HIV infection at the population level with an aim of informing public health interventions. He is also keen in delineating virus/host interactions at the molecular level with the aim of informing the design of prophylactic and therapeutic vaccine candidates. Dr Hassan is also interested in understanding pathways conferring reduced susceptibility to antiretroviral therapy with the aim of informing optimal treatment regimen.

His projects involve collaborations with colleagues from various institutions including the department of systems virology at Lund University (Sweden), the Antiviral Unit at Public Health England (UK) and the HIV Pathogenesis Programme at University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa). His current projects are supported with a training fellowship from the Wellcome Trust, an award from IAVI’s Vaccine Immunology Science and Technology for Africa (VISTA) program, a Path-to-independence award from the Sub-Saharan African Network for TB/HIV Research Excellence (SANTHE) and a preparatory fellowship from the Africa Research Excellence Fund (AREF). Dr Hassan is motivated to contribute knowledge towards informing interventions aimed at achieving HIV epidemic control in Africa.

Mohamed Hussein AbdelRazik was born in Egypt, on 1984. He received his B.Sc. degree in Electronics - Physics with grade very good with honors first on his class from Ain Shams University. In 2010, he got his M.Sc. degree in Physics (electronics) from the same university. He got research scholarship in Josaphat Microwave Remote Sensing Laboratory, Chiba University Japan for design and analysis of microwave antennas.  He got his PhD under title “Design, Simulation, Characterization and Analysis of Electromagnetic Energy Harvesting Devices” through a collaboration between Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, Egypt and Center for Photonics and Smart Materials, Zewail City of Science and Technology, Egypt in 2016. Since 2016, he works as lecturer at the Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, and Post-Doctoral Fellow at the CPSM Center, Zewail City, Egypt. He got a Postdoctoral fellowship in Department of Electrical and electronic Engineering, Wayne State University, Michigan, USA in 2017. He is working in the area of “Computational Electromagnetics”, with good track records of publications. He has built an outstanding in the area of Computational modeling with emphasis on nanoantennas and nanowires for solar energy harvesting. Based on his research, 21 journal papers, mostly in IEEE, JOSAB, optics express, photonics for energy and IEE journals, have been published, and 29 conference papers have been presented in the best national and international meetings.  His main research interests are focused on the areas of numerical modeling of solar cells and nanoantenna for point to point communications and energy harvesting applications. In this context, Dr. Hussein has reported novel designs of highly efficient nanowires and nano-antennas for energy harvesting applications for the first time. Further, he has been awarded the Incentive State Award for Engineering Sciences from the Egyptian Government for the year 2018/2019, Egypt. Recently, He has been elected by Minister of Higher Education and Research in Egypt as a member of the National Council for Communications and Information Technology, and the Egyptian Young Academy of Sciences (EYAS), Egypt

Dr Stella Kabiri-Marial, a senior research officer and program Leader at the National Agricultural Research Organization in Uganda, is one of the 40 candidates selected for the fifth cohort of the African Academy of Sciences Affiliates Mentorship scheme, who will receive substantial support to develop into outstanding research leaders in their professional fields.

Stella, who is based at the Mukono Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute, is a trained Scientist in Production Ecology and Resource Conservation, with a PhD from Wageningen University, the Netherlands. Her study focused on preparing African rice farmers against parasitic weeds in a changing environment. She has a Msc. in Geo-information Science and Earth Observation from the University of Twente, the Netherlands and her field work focused on genetic remote sensing crop models of rice systems of the Mekong Delta, of Vietnam. Stella has a BSc. in Agriculture from Makerere University, Uganda.

Stella is currently a grantee and a Post Doc. of the Climate Research for Development (CR4D) grant for Climate research, at the African Academy of Sciences. Her research revolves around the development of a Zero carbon process of fertilizer production using air as a raw material, to illustrate a way out of the current fertilizer production process that consumes a lot of energy and in the process emits alarmingly enormous greenhouse gases, responsible for global warming.