AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS
● NANOAFNET’s chairman has been invited to be a selection member of the jury of both the international and the Sub-Sahara l’Oreal-UNESCO Women in Science Award Committees. Likewise, he was involved in the Obasanjo African Award in Sciences, Technology & Innovation selection committee as well. This latter is handled by the African Academy of Sciences.
● NANOAFNET’s chairman has been elected member of the Islamic Academy of Sciences (IAS). He has been officially elected during the 18th annual meeting of the IAS held in Doha-Qatar.
● NANOAFNET senior member from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife Ile-Nigeria, Dr. Esther Ikhuoria, has been awarded a Fullbright fellowship to conduct a research project at the Oregon State University in the USA following a sojourn at the network’s headquarters in South Africa supported by TWAS-Trieste.
● NANOAFNET Ethiopian junior fellow, Ms. Zebib Y Nuru , currently registered at the University of Western Cape-South Africa while conducting her research at the network headquarters iThemba LABS with a partial OWSDW fellowship program, has been awarded a Lindau fellowship to attend the upcoming 62nd Lindau Nobel laureate meeting. From the 1st to 6th July, 2012, more than 25 Nobel Laureates and 550 young researchers from all over the world will meet in Lindau-Germany to exchange ideas, bdiscuss projects and build international networks. The 62nd Nobel Lindau Meeting will be dedicated to physics.
● NANOAFNET junior fellow, Ms. Valencia Jacob, conducting a nanotechnology research PhD project on nanofibers by electrospinning for medical and textile applications was granted a l’Oreal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science in the Sub-Sahara region category. This award recognizes her outstanding research outputs; she has published more that 6 ISI peer review contributions during her PhD.
● NANOAFNET Rwandese junior fellow, Ms. Claire Ineza, from NUR-Rwanda has been awarded an OWSDW “TWOWS” fellowship for postgraduate studies. While she is conducting her research project at iThemba LAB, she is registered at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology-Western Cape.
● NANOAFNET junior fellows; Mr. Itani Madiba and Mr. Nangamso Nyangiwe, have been awarded the SANHARP best poster and best presentation awards during the 3rd SANHARP national conference (SANHARP:South African Nuclear Human Resources Program).
● NANOAFNET is currently represented officially in the board of the African Materials Research Society following the AMRS 6th international conference, held in Victoria falls-Zimbabwe, (Dec.2011). The network’s chairman, vice-chairman and the East Africa regional contact point have been elected in the AMRS board with the Egypt Contact Point Prof. Mona Marei as the President.
● NANOAFNET has received an additional African recognition. Members of the network will be synergizing with the Nelson Mandela African University of Science & Technology (Abuja-Nigeria) through intensive nano-photonics and materials courses.
● NANOAFNET junior members: Dr. Bala Diop Ngom and Mr. Saleh Khamlich from Senegal and Morocco respectively have been awarded financial support to attend 1 month and 2 weeks training at the Abdus Salam ICTP in Trieste-Italy in lasers spectroscopy and materials for solar energy applications.
● NANOAFNET junior member: Mr. Mthuthuzeli Zamxaka has been invited for a 2 months visit at ELETTRA to be trained in various synchrotron surface-interface techniques.