News & updates
November 1 Issue 33
|
|
Welcome to this edition of the CARTA monthly, where we keep you updated on our latest news.
We hope you have been keeping up with our CARTA @ 10 activities. We have more in store for you in November, including a webinar on Funding postdoctoral training and Research Capacity in Africa.
Also, find out what our fellows and graduates are up to, check out the available opportunities you may be eligible for, and enjoy our selection of 'our reads of the month'!
|
|
|
|
Introducing our new communications officer. Welcome Gloria! |
Gloria has joined us as the new CARTA Communications officer. She will be responsible for developing and implementing communication strategies that will help advance the Consortium’s work.
We welcome her into the CARTA family.
|
|
CARTA @ 10 Events
As our CARTA @ 10 celebrations continue, we have in the past month began a webinar series starting with the ‘CARTA History & Milestones’. In this webinar, the panelists reflected on the program’s success which have been achieved through contributions by the fellows and partner institutions. If you missed it, you can find the recording here. The second webinar illustrated the mainstreaming of CARTA interventions in partner universities while also pointing out possible barriers and how to circumvent and overcome them.
|
|
Webinar: Funding Postdoctoral Training and Research Capacity Strengthening in Africa |
As we commemorate CARTA’s 10th anniversary, we have organized a series of public conversations on the CARTA program. Previous webinars have discussed the program's history, its multiple initiatives, and challenges faced over the years.
The third webinar in the CARTA @ 10 series will be on ' Funding Postdoctoral Training and Research Capacity Strengthening in Africa.' This webinar will enlighten existing and potential grantees on the funding landscape in Africa, point out priority areas, expectations of funders, how to recognize a suitable funder for a project, what fund/ers look for in a potential grantee, and pitfalls to be aware of prior to and during a grant period.
Date: Monday, 2nd November 2020, 16.00- 17.30 hrs, EAT
|
|
|
|
CARTA @ 10 Scientific Conference |
CARTA fellows and graduates will come together in a virtual Scientific Conference scheduled for 03-04 December 2020 to present and discuss their research work. The audience will have a chance to listen to the presenters’ work in health systems and non-communicable diseases, ageing, sexual and reproductive health rights, infectious diseases, and immunization among others.
|
|
First Virtual Joint Advanced Seminar (JAS 2) - November 2020 |
CARTA will host its first virtual Joint Advanced Seminar (JAS) 2 in November 2020, consisting of online lectures followed by a two-week face-to-face session in March 2021.
The Joint Advanced Seminars (JAS) are designed to enhance the fellows’ skills and knowledge; guide and propel them through the research process; and provide a foundation for building networks of researchers, peers, and mentors.
|
|
Virtual Teaching and Grant Management: Lessons from a CARTA Graduate
|
The Covid-19 pandemic has seen CARTA fellows and graduates utilize their programme-acquired skills in adopting to virtual teaching and in managing their grants. We caught up with Dr. Nkosiyaze Dube, a Cohort Four Graduate who is a recipient of a CARTA re-entry grant, and lecturer at the Social Work unit at the University of Witwatersrand. He shared his experience and the lessons he has drawn from CARTA.
"I urge CARTA to continue with these grants for its fellows because they help enhance our knowledge and practical skills in managing grants. CARTA has the unique characteristic of developing an all-rounded graduate and academic ready to lead in their institution"
|
|
CARTA Fellowship Builds Collaborative Research Output between Early-career Health Researchers in Africa |
In this study, CARTA fellow Dieudonne Uwizeye (Cohort One Graduate) sought to describe particular aspects of the CARTA program that promotes collaboration between the PhD fellows in the program, and to determine the patterns of collaborative publications that resulted from the intervention. They observed that CARTA’s efforts to build cross-cohort, cross-institutional and multidisciplinary collaborations were realised by recruiting fellows from multiple disciplines and different institutions, and organizing cross-institutional and cross-cohort seminars and encouraging cross-institutional registration.
|
|
Enock featured in the Health Volunteers Overseas Report: Investing in Health Professionals |
Enock Chisati (Cohort Seven Fellow), Head of the Physiotherapy Programme at the University of Malawi, was featured in the Health Volunteers Overseas (HVO) annual report of 2019 after a successful collaboration with the institution. HVO is a US-based institution whose mission is to improve the availability and quality of health care through the education, training and professional development of the health workforce in resource-scarce countries. Through his collaboration with HVO, an educational curriculum to upgrade Diploma level Physiotherapists to a Bachelor's level at the university of Malawi, was developed.
|
|
Nomfundo Appointed to the Professional Board for Speech, Language and Hearing Professions |
Nomfundo Moroe (Cohort Six Graduate), has been appointed as a board member of the Professional Board for Speech, Language and Hearing Professions of the Health Professional Council of South Africa (HPCSA), for a period of 5 years effective 01 November 2020.
Nomfundo had this to say about her appointment, “I am looking forward to this journey and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank CARTA for all the opportunities and the support thus far. It is highly appreciated.”
|
|
Godwin Inducted into the Ugandan National Academy of Sciences |
Godwin Anywar (Cohort Six Fellow) has been inducted into the Ugandan National Academy of Sciences, following a rigorous nomination and vetting process. The induction into the Academy took place during the UNAS’ 20th Annual Scientific Conference and General Meeting in October 2020.
Godwin had this to say about his induction “It was a great honour to be recognised by the scientific community in my country. The academy is prestigious as it brings together the best scientific minds in the country. My recognition is a testament to the great training programs by CARTA and hard work.”
|
|
Esther makes Presentation to the International Journal of Science |
Esther Nabakwe (Cohort One Graduate) made a presentation on infant feeding in the International Journal of Science and Research. In her study, she noted an insignificant collaboration between anthropologists and pediatricians in research on young infant feeding and recommends research collaboration to enhance understanding of cultural and ecological contextual variation. Watch it here.
|
|
Commendation on the CARTA Institutionalization Project at the OAU by Provost |
|
Following a long and successful partnership with CARTA, the Obafemi Awolowo University’s postgraduate college leadership has expressed interest in increasing the scope of the CARTA curriculum. The Nigerian University is a beneficiary of a project to strengthen the research capacity of doctoral students and supervisors. The project tagged “Intervention towards strengthening Research Training in OAU” has been praised for its contribution to the curriculum review of postgraduate programmes in the university.
Prof. Yetunde Ajibade, the Provost at the Postgraduate College, in a letter to CARTA said that he could attest to the remarkable impact of the intervention. “I want to express the readiness of the postgraduate college to scale the curriculum to a wider audience of postgraduate students in Obafemi Awolowo University,” he stated.
|
|
Wits Emerges Second in Africa in the 2021 Best Global Universities Ranking |
|
Our co-lead, The University of Witwatersrand has been ranked second best university in Africa by the US News and World Report. Emerging among the top 20 are our other partners, Makerere University, The University of Nairobi and Ibadan University. The institutions were evaluated on their research performance and their ratings by members of the academic community around the world and in the region.
|
|
NWO-WOTRO Project Members |
|
You might be eligible for funding in a new NWO-WOTRO call, in which proposals can be submitted to build on previously funded projects.
Deadline: 19 January 2021, 14:00 hours CET
|
|
2020 Call for Nominations for the African Academy of Sciences Fellowship |
|
The 2020 Call for Nominations for the African Academy of Sciences Fellowship is now open!
More information on the AAS Fellowship and the nomination process, is available on the AAS website.
Deadline: 7th December 2020.
|
|
New IDRC Research Ideas Competition for Doctoral and Post-doctoral Fellows |
|
Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) announces a new Research Ideas Competition to promote health, sustainability and equity in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). The details on the call and its eligibility criteria can be found here.
Deadline for applications is December 11th 2020.
|
|
Call for papers: ICML and AHILA 2021 Conference- Pretorial, South Africa
The International Congress of Medical Librarianship (ICML) and the Association for Health Information and Libraries in Africa (AHILA) invite you to submit an abstract to to their June 2021 Congress.
Deadline for submissions:16th November 2020
Conference Dates: 21-25 June 2021.
More information is available here.
|
|
WHO Action Brief: Online call for Submissions |
|
Do you have an innovative approach to maintaining essential health services during the COVID-19 pandemic?
The WHO COVID19: Health Services Learning Hub is a dynamic new web-based platform that will allow the critical sharing of experiences and learning from innovative practices to inform the collective global response in real time.
Find out more about how you can contribute to the brief here.
|
|
Call for Applications: STIAS Iso Lomso Fellowships |
|
STIAS, the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study in South Africa, has opened the fifth annual call of its prestigious Iso Lomso Fellowship Programme.
Application deadline: 15 February 2021
Find more details and the application form here.
|
|
Investigator-Initiated Research on Genetic Counselling Processes and Practices (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)
|
|
The purpose of this initiative is to support targeted studies on genetic counseling processes and practices in genomic medicine.
RFA-HG-20-049 is for smaller, more focused projects. It uses the R21 mechanism and provides up to $400,000 direct costs for up to three years with no more than $200,000 direct costs/year.
RFA-HG-20-048 is for larger/longer-term studies. It uses the R01 mechanism and provides up to $500,000 direct costs per year for up to 4 years.
Application deadline: July 8, 2021.
|
|
Harnessing Data Science for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa(DS-I Africa) |
|
The DS-I Africa funding opportunities have been published! In these FOAs, NIH is calling for applications in four areas: an open data science platform and coordinating center; research hubs; research training programs; and ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI) research.
Find more information here.
|
|
International PhD Programme at the Institute of Molecular Biology |
The Institute of Molecular Biology invites applications for its international PhD programme. Projects within the Programme address key questions related to the overarching theme of Gene Regulation, Epigenetics & Genome Stability.
Find more information here.
Application deadline – 27 Nov 2020.
|
|
Nominations for the Olusegun Obasanjo Prize for Scientific Discovery and/or Technological Innovation |
Nominations must be submitted here by 22 December, 2020.
Find more information here.
|
|
Open Access Article Charge Waiver for more than 100 Journals |
The Lithuania-based Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL) has negotiated article processing charge waivers for 34 partner countries that will be valid until December 2022. Read more from the University World News.
|
|
Request for Proposals on Food Security and Nutrition |
|
Shepelo Getrude Peter (Cohort Eight Fellow) published Molecular prevalence of emerging Anaplasma and Ehrlichia pathogens in apparently healthy dairy cattle in peri-urban Nairobi, Kenya, in the BMC Veterinary Research. The study sought to provide the first report of infection of dairy cattle in Kenya with A. platys and E. minasensis,(tick-borne pathogens of livestock).
|
|
Aanuoluwapo Olajubu (Cohort Six Graduate) published Effectiveness of a mobile health intervention on uptake of recommended postnatal care services in Nigeria, in PLOS ONE. The study investigated the effect of a mobile health intervention on postnatal care (PNC) attendance among mothers in selected primary healthcare facilities in Osun State, Nigeria.
|
|
Felishana Cherop (Cohort Seven Fellow) published Patient loyalty to HIV care in an HIV facility in Eldoret, Kenya: A mediated mediation, in the AAS open research gateway. The study sought to determine how patient loyalty to HIV care is influenced by multiple factors in a healthcare system environment.
|
|
Macellina Y. Ijadunola (Cohort Six Graduate) published Reproductive health challenges of male and female street beggars and use of reproductive health services by female street beggars in Ife-Ijesa, Nigeria, in the The European Journal of Contraception & Reproductive Health Care. It investigated the reproductive health challenges in Nigeria of male and female street beggars and the use of reproductive health services by female street beggars.
|
|
Mohamed Kassim, (Cohort Four Graduate, implementing a CARTA re-entry grant) published A qualitative study of the maternal health information-seeking behaviour of women of reproductive age in Mpwapwa district, Tanzania in the Health Information and Libraries Journal. The study explored maternal health information‐seeking behaviour of women of reproductive age in a rural Tanzania.
|
|
|
|
COVID-19: How lockdowns affected health access in African and Asian slums
Funke Fayehun,(incoming CARTA Chairperson) et alia, write about the far-reaching consequences of the tight movement restrictions imposed to curb the novel coronavirus disease. Read more.
Let’s not talk about sex: insights into how Kenyan parents talk to their teens
Beatrice Maina (Cohort Six Fellow and researcher at APHRC), Boniface Ushie & Caroline Kabiru, (APHRC) write about the role parents play in educating their adolescents about sexual and reproductive health. Read more.
How to get Malawian men more involved in antenatal care - and why it matters
|
|
|
|
Postdocs' Guide to Gaining Independence (By NIAID)
This is a postdoc guide helpful to postdoctoral researchers who eventually want to be principal investigator (PI) of their own labs, most likely as a faculty member at an academic institution.
Media Skills for Scientists (Source- Scidev.net)
Looking to gain some media skills? Here are some resources to get you started:
The Global Atlas of Palliative Care (2nd edition)
You can now download and read the Global Atlas of Palliative Care which was launched on 10th October during World Hospice and Palliative Care Day. Find it here.
Health Care Information for All - Information Projects
Health care Information For All (HIFA) announces the launch of two new complementary HIFA projects.
The HIFA COVID-19 Project is currently synthesising and analysing discussions on the HIFA-English forum: Read more.
- Essential Health Services and COVID-19
The HIFA Essential Health Services and COVID-19 Project is looking specifically at the challenge of how to maintain and strengthen essential health services (EHS) during and after the pandemic. Read more.
The Mawazo Learning Exchange (MLEx) is now live. The Mawazo Learning Exchange is a new online learning community for African women in academia and research that offers training in core professional and research skills. Read more.
|
|
WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU |
|
|
Share with us news and updates such as upcoming events, meetings, story ideas, new collaborations, new trials/updates, upcoming and published papers, policy briefs, community engagement activities, scholarships, what you are reading, if you won a grant, attending or about an upcoming conference, a call for applications/funding/papers etc.
Share these before November 20 2020 to be included in the next CARTA news & updates, by sending an email to cartaenquiries@aphrc.org.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
