Volume 19| August 2, 2019
CARTA at the DELTAS Africa Scientific Conference in Dakar, Senegal
CARTA was well represented at the Developing Excellence in Leadership, Training, and Science (DELTAS) Africa Annual General Meeting in Dakar, Senegal from July 15-18 . Eleven of our fellows showcased their ground-breaking doctoral research that is reducing Africa’s disease burden and creating healthier communities. Some of the fellows work was quoted in this South African Broadcasting Corporation's news article .

The fellows were: Esther Clyde Nabakwe and Dieudonne Uwizeye (Cohort One); Diana Menya (Cohort Two); Save Kumwenda, Kato Charles Drago, and Adesola Oluwafunmilola Olumide (Cohort Three); Dube Nkosiyazi (Cohort Four), Mbada Kikelomo Aboyowa (Cohort Five), and Somefun Oluwaseyi Dolapo, Khumbo Kalulu and Chimwemwe Kwanjo Banda (Cohort Six).

CARTA’s Catherine Kyobutungi, Eunice Kilonzo, Florah Karimi, and Marta Vicente-Crespo also attended the three-day meeting hosted by the African Academy of Sciences. Follow the discussion on social media via #DELTASAfrica19 and see a video on the conference here .

Afterwards, the women researchers attended a two-day Global Forum for Women in Science and Research Conference (GoFoWISER) that brought together women in science and research from across the globe to discuss science, mentorship, and their professional development.
We were in Johannesburg, South Africa for the Outcome Harvesting training
CARTA Program Managers, Marta Vicente-Crespo and Florah Karimi , Communications Officer Eunice Kilonzo and African Population and Health Research Center's Leah Wangari participated in a three-day hands-on training on Outcome Harvesting facilitated by Barbara Klugman. The training from July 30 - August 1 , afforded the four skills that will enable them to identify, formulate, verify, analyse and interpret ‘outcomes’ also changes in programs where relations of cause and effect are not fully understood. Outcome harvesting collects evidence of what has changed and works backwards to determine whether and how an intervention contributed to these changes.
Your personal digital copy: Our January to June 2019 Newsletter 
In the first-half of the year, we have been involved in various activities aimed at building a vibrant multidisciplinary African Academy that is able to lead world-class research that makes a positive impact on population and public health. Read about what we were involved in, in Rwanda, Dakar, Sweden and many other places. More information in our 12-pages of our paperback newsletter. Click here to read and download our latest newsletter.
Our month-long residential Joint Advanced Seminar 3 ongoing in Ibadan, Nigeria 
Our 23 fellows, from Cohort Seven, Six, and Five are at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria for the month-long Joint Advanced Seminar three (3). This is the seventh such seminar held at the University. Thirty-eight (38) facilitators will support our doctoral fellows to analyze and write up their thesis, present sections of their research and participate in daily scientific debate sessions, also the Blitz sessions.

The seminar began on July 29 and ends on August 24, 2019 and will give the fellows an opportunity to engage in an intergenerational dialogue, a melting pot of experiences, with other PhD holders who will share their experiences, motivations, thrills and challenges of doctoral studies. During the JAS 3, on August 20 , Prof Folashade Ogunsola , Deputy Vice Chancellor (Development Services) of the University of Lagos, Nigeria will give a public lecture on Africa Rising: Harnessing the power of Disruptive technologies to Bridge the Development Divide in Health .
Kudus describes his encounters with Nigerian medicine men in China
Read about this and more from our Cohort Six Fellow, Kudus Oluwatoyin Adebayo , from the University of Ibadan, on the role of the undocumented Nigerian medicine entrepreneurs in China and their role in availing health care services for African migrants, here .
Catherine attends Summer School on Reproductive Health and Rights in Belgium
Catherine Kafu (third on the panel from the left) , our Cohort Eight fellow, was one of 21 participants of the Reproductive Health and Rights Summer School at Ghent University in Belgium. The residential course, hosted by the Faculty of Medicine, brought together 14 nationalities from July 7 to 18, 2019.

She describes her time at the school as being “intriguing and mind-provoking” given that the discussions ranged from transgender issues, uterus transportation, mental health, family planning, use of human egg cells, abortion, as well as rights of surrogacy and IVF.
“The abortion lecture was the most remarkable as it fitted with my research interests and underscored the timeliness of my PhD topic,” she said.
Her PhD looks at the role of media in abortion discourse among adolescents in Kenya.
She adds that the diverse discussions dug into ‘the shift from pro-life and/or pro-choice to pro-voice’, an area she is keen on researching on. In addition to the intensive sessions, she also visited Bruges city, one of Europe's best preserved cities and had an international cooking event where each participant prepared their local meal and shared with others attending the summer school.
Charles in the US for global health fellowship
Charles Ssemugambo (left) , our Cohort Nine Fellow from Makerere University, was in Maryland, the US, from June 29 - July 5, 2019 for a one-week training as part of the 2019-2020 class of the UJMT Fogarty Global Health Fellowship Program.
Viva Maria for the PhD defense!
Maria Chikalipo , our Cohort Five fellow from the University of Malawi, defended her doctoral research on July 25 on male partner involvement in antenatal education in Malawi.
Lester shares research findings and is quoted in local Malawi newspaper
On July 17 , our Cohort Five fellow Lester Kapanda had a public research dissemination conference at the University of Malawi-College of Medicine in a session chaired by Prof Ademola Ajuwon from the University of Ibadan. His one-hour presentation on access to HIV health services among key population men in Malawi, is based on his doctoral research and was quoted in a local newspaper as seen on the right.
Adeyinka in Nairobi for mhealth training
Adeyinka Adefolarin (right) , our Cohort three fellow from the University of Ibadan, was selected as a Scholar for the NIH-supported Africa mHealth Research Institute (AMHRI) held in Nairobi, Kenya from July 22-26, 2019 .

Her doctoral work focused on the development and the integration of the use of technology device or app in African languages in the field of health promotion and education. She graduated in 2018.
Felicitations! Sara and Mutua graduate at the University of the Witwatersrand
Congratulations to our fellows, Sara Nieuwoudt and Michael Mutua who graduated on July 11 at the University of the Witwatersrand. Michael's study highlighted the need for clear guidelines to prevent unsafe abortions and related mortality and expanded access to effective contraceptive services. 
Sara's research focused on infant feeding in the first six months in Soweto, South Africa. It explored the complex factors involved in infant feeding decision-making during the first six months of life, with particular attention to the evolving role of the HIV epidemic in South Africa.
Ikeola participates in three-weeks epidemiology course in the US
Our Cohort Five Fellow Ikeola Adeoye (third left standing) from the University of Ibadan was at the Johns Hopkins Graduate Summer Institute of Epidemiology and Biostatistics from June 10-28. She took six courses critical for her doctoral training which focuses on a cohort study that investigates obesity among pregnant women in Ibadan.
Thank you Funke, Prof. Omigbodun, Kudus, Catherine, Charles, Prof. Muula, Sara, and Ikeola for the photos and updates.
DAAD (the German Academic Exchange Service) is offering up to twelve (12) scholarships, open to young East African academics and scientists, for the academic year 2020/2021 to pursue a PhD in Germany. DAAD will offer additional thirty (30) scholarships to (permanent and part-time) staff members of public and private universities and public research institutes in Kenya to pursue a PhD in Germany. The scholarships are open to all fields of research. No age limit. Deadline: October 31, 2019. Contact Anja Bengelstorff, bengelstorff@daadafrica.org for more details.


UNICEF is organizing an experts conference on brain health (mental health) in children and adolescents in November, 2019 . They are looking for well known and respected African researchers/scholars as well as organisations working on these issues that could contribute to the knowledge and debate. Email Dr Priscilla Idele , Director of the UNICEF Office of Research, here: pidele@unicef.org.

Follow this link to become the Next Einstein Ambassador

Breaking systemic barriers to women’s participation in science. This call is open to research institutions, consortia, or non-governmental organizations with proven research capacity . The institutions should have a strong presence in eligible low and middle-income countries. The research must be proposed and executed by an institution or group of institutions that are independent of the institution(s) to be studied. Deadline : August 15, 2019 by 17:00 (EDT)

The 100&Change is a MacArthur Foundation competition for a $100 million grant to fund a single proposal that will make measurable progress toward solving a significant problem. 100&Change will select a bold proposal that promises real progress toward solving a critical problem of our time. And it will award a $100 million grant to help make that solution a reality. Proposals focused on any critical issue are welcome .


Templeton World Charity Foundation is pleased to announce a new Request for Proposals for the Global Innovations for Character Development initiative . The initiative aims to support scientific research related to the development and measurement of character strengths in diverse contexts. The Foundation is offering up to 12 Proof of Concept ($234,000 USD) awards and one Transition to Scale ($1 million USD) award for innovative, high quality research and implementation projects. More details here .

For other opportunities check out the CARTA website .
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