Volume 09| September 28, 2018
CARTA partners, secretariat and funders at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria
CARTA secretariat, partners, and funders were at the Obafemi Awolowo University, in Nigeria for four meetings: Inaugural Focal Persons Meeting on September 16 , the 9th Partners Meeting on September 17-18, 17th Funders and Board of Management Meeting and the 18th Board of Management (BoM) Meeting both held on September 19.

The BoM meeting, among other issues, discussed the future direction of CARTA and also made decisions and recommendations on Cohort Nine (9) selections, Re-entry Grants, Post Docs, Small Institutional Grants and the 2019 Calendar of Events.
KUDOS! Our Fellow appointed Associate Editor–Chronic Diseases Epidemiology, BMC Public Health 
Cohort Two Fellow, Stephen Ojiambo Wandera, will in the new role support the journal’s ethos, scope, editorial standards, and policies. 

He will assess manuscripts for their suitability for peer review, select suitable reviewers who meet the journal’s requirements and recommend decisions on the basis of the peer reviewers’ reports and his own assessment of the manuscript while adhering to the journal’s editorial policies.

The lecturer at the Makerere University Department of Population Studies, will also receive editorial training by the journal.

He said: “CARTA trained me to write better and to publish in High Impact Journals. BMC Public Health Associate Editors need 15 journal articles in reputable journals. I have 17 of them.” 

He holds a PhD in Population Studies and his doctoral research focused on “Disparities in access to healthcare among older persons in Uganda”. He has conducted research on, among other aspects, the nexus between sexual and gender-based violence and reproductive health outcomes; health status; and access to healthcare among married women in Uganda. 
CARTA Fellows and Graduate attend Epidemiology course in Sweden
Six fellows attended the 36th European Course in Tropical Epidemiology (ECTE) 2018 at the University of Gottenburg, Sweden on August
22 – September 7, 2018 .

Anne Khisa (Cohort Three) , Anne Maina and Angella Musewa (Cohort Eight) , Kellen Karimi and Justus Musasiah, Olusola Olawoye (Cohort Seven) , Tutu Mzee (Cohort Six) participated in the three-weeks intensive course on basic epidemiology and biostatistics.

The annual course is intended for staff working in low and middle income countries. It focuses on methods and the practical application of epidemiological tools in high burden-countries. ECTE is a collaborative venture of various European centers of Tropical Medicine and Public Health.
CARTA Fellow awarded at the University of the Witwatersrand's 2018 Research day and Postgraduate Expo
CARTA Fellow Sara Nieuwoudt, (Cohort Four) presented and won a poster entitled “Health workers and breastfeeding promotion in an HIV endemic community: an analysis of policy translation.”

This was during the University of the Witwatersrand’s Faculty of Health Science biennial Research Day and Postgraduate Expo held on September 6, 2018 .

She was awarded the Best Student Poster under the theme, Education, Policy and Systems, and won a prize of R2 500 (USD$176) in the form of a Faculty Research Committee Travel Grant.

The Expo was meant to expose postgraduate students and researchers to leading research work taking place in the Faculty. Secondly, it offers a platform to share emerging results from ongoing research work in the Faculty. In her case, she shared results based on her doctoral study supported by CARTA. Finally, the event sought to strengthen linkages, collaboration, and coordination of research.

The award-winning poster is based on her recent publications in the International Breastfeeding Journal and The Conversation Africa .
"I got a chance to peep into the world of innovative world-class glaucoma research in Italy," CARTA Fellow
" l got an invitation and sponsorship (travel award) to attend the Glaucoma research Society (GRS) meeting in Parma, Italy from August 29 to September 1, 2018 . 

For the first time since inception of this society, an African from Sub Saharan Africa was invited to the meeting. For the first time in the GRS, three ophthalmologists were nominated and invited for the meeting: one from South Africa, another from Nepal and myself from Nigeria.

Select ophthalmologists become members strictly by election. Attendance at these biennial meetings is for a select few and strictly by invitation. 

It was thus indeed a very rich meeting and one that gave me a peep into the world of innovative world-class glaucoma research ," wrote the Cohort Seven Fellow from the University of Ibadan.
  • The Developing Excellence in Leadership, Training and Science (DELTAS) Africa Communications Workshop in Kilifi, Kenya from October 4-5, 2018. A key outcome of the workshop shall be action plans for the generation of success stories emanating from the 11 DELTAS programs such as CARTA, others are included in the map on the right. 

  • The 2018 CARTA Graduate workshop in Nairobi, Kenya from October 1-6, 2018. The workshop will equip 13 post-doctoral early career researchers with skills to develop a successful and substantial proposal for a personal award to support their research or a research grant or large project that they will lead.
Can you write? The Conversation Africa is looking for you!
Write about the findings or new research in your area of expertise, your doctoral study or any of the following international health days in September and October here.

The Conversation Africa is a highly reputable and credible source of information to improve the quality and scope of public discourse. Interested? let us know.
The African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) is organizing an Advanced Research Methodology Workshop in Kigali, Rwanda from November 5 – 9, 2018. Costs: USD 500. Apply here . Deadline: October 15, 2018.

Call for Abstracts for the Africa Health Agenda International Conference 2019 (#AHAIC2019). Deadline: October 15, 2018.

Apply for the upcoming Immunology in the Tropics course on TB by the Makerere/UVRI Infection and Immunity Centre of Excellence. The two-weeks course is suited to PhD and MSc candidates, or clinicians and lecturers wishing to update their Immunology knowledge. 
Deadline: November 2, 2018. Download the application form for here . 

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is inviting proposals for the latest round of the   Grand Challenges Explorations  initiative. Deadline: November 14, 2018.

Call for papers and participation for the 9th KEMRI Annual Scientific & Health (KASH) Conference . Deadline: November 30, 2018.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is accepting applications for the 2019 Ford Foundation Fellowship Programs. Eligibility and online application information are available on the Ford Foundation Fellowship Programs website . Deadline: December 13, 2018.

Wellcome Photography Prize 2019 open to photographers and other image makers from all disciplines to enter the Wellcome Photography Prize, which celebrates compelling imagery that captures stories of health, medicine and science. Deadline: December 17, 2018. Click here to apply .


For other opportunities check the CARTA website .
Share with us any news and updates such as published papers, policy briefs, community engagement activities, scholarships, won a grant, attending or about an upcoming conference, a call for applications/funding/papers. Share before October 16, 2018 to be included in the next CARTA news & updates.