News & Updates

November 2022 Edition, Issue 59

Happy new month! Welcome to another edition of the CARTA monthly updates. Read on to keep abreast with what is new.

Launch of the CARTA Evidence Website

CARTA kicked off the Graduate Granting Writing Workshop (GGWW) on November 28 with the aim of equipping its graduates to develop successful and substantial grant proposals to support their research, and/or a research grant or large project they can lead. GGWW is also an opportunity for graduates to refine their applications for CARTA re-entry grants and postdoctoral fellowships.

Concurrently taking place with the GGWW is a Training of Trainers (ToT) designed to provide an opportunity for the ToT participants to have practical experience on how CARTA organizes and runs GWs, as partner institutions seek to mainstream the intervention. Participating are 25 CARTA graduates, 7 facilitators, and 11 ToT participants. The workshop and ToT, taking place in Nairobi, Kenya will end on December 2. 

Joint Advanced Seminar Three (JAS 3) - CARTA PhD training for cohort 10 fellows came to a close on November 26, having started on October 10, 2022. The seminar commenced with two weeks of virtual training, which was followed by a residential phase that took place from November 7. Sixteen (16) fellows out of a targeted 17 have participated in the seminar after one of the fellows was unsuccessful in securing a visa. 

Linda Alinane Nyondo-Mipando (cohort 2 graduate, University of Malawi) was awarded the Kamuzu University of Health Sciences (KUHeS) Research Excellence Award (female category) during the 2022 KUHeS Research Dissemination Conference that took place on November 24 - 25 at the KUHes Campus in Malawi.

Enock Chisati (cohort 7 graduate, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences) won a grant to conduct a research project titled ‘Understanding barriers, enablers, and potential adaptations to facilitate adaptations to facilitate implementation of the GLAD program in low and middle-income settings: training outcomes and stakeholder perspectives in Malawi'.

The project aims to examine Malawian physiotherapists' knowledge and beliefs about capabilities to provide patient education and exercise therapy to people with knee and hip osteoarthritis. This will then inform modification of the Good Life with OsteoArthritis from Denmark (GLAD) training course to be applicable in low and middle-income countries such as Malawi. The project will run from November 2022 to October 2023.

Mpho Molete (cohort 6 graduate, University of the Witwatersrand) was appointed an Adjunct Fellow at the Australian Centre for Integration of Oral Health, Western Sydney University. The appointment involves research collaboration and mentorship that is focusing on the integration of non-oral health workers in oral health programs and models of care using implementation science approaches.

Sara Nieuwoudt (cohort 4 graduate, University of the Witwatersrand) was appointed an Academic Editor for PLOS ONE. She looks forward to the support of the CARTA community as expert reviewers for the manuscripts that she is assigned. Sara was also made a Scientific Co-Chair for the inaugural African Social Marketing Association Conference, which will be held at the University of Witwatersrand in April 2023. Abstract submissions for the conference are open to anyone involved in social and behavioral change (SBC) or social marketing research. Details

Julienne Murererehe (cohort 8 fellow, University of Rwanda) received a research grant from the UR-Sweden program following her proposal on ‘Modelling tooth wear risk factors and assessing oral health-related quality of life among HIV/AIDS patients in Rwanda’. The project will run for 2 years starting in 2023 and she will have the opportunity to be mentored by CARTA graduates/senior researchers.

Judith Mangeni (cohort 3 graduate, Moi University) presented an abstract at the 71st  international American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) conference held in Seattle, USA between October 30 to November 3. Her poster presentation was on ‘Long lasting insecticidal mosquito nets (LLINs) coverage and use of pre-and post-Piperonyl Butoxide (PBO)  in Western Kenya, a high transmission region.’

Alexander Kagaha (cohort 7 graduate, Makerere University) presented at the Act Sustainable Research Conference in Gothenburg, Sweden between November 16-18 on the topic ‘Inside liberal freedoms and autocratic regimes: health injustices to invisible populations in Uganda’. He also delivered two virtual presentations at the 2022 Canadian Conference on Global Health (CCGH), one on his CARTA PhD experience, and the other on the topic ‘Ebola virus disease: why it matters for us all’. The CCGH was held from November 21-23.

Tumaini Malenga (cohort 4 graduate, University of Malawi) participated in a panel titled ‘What works: political commitment and finance for the SDGs’ at the annual Oslo SDG Initiative Conference held at the University of Oslo in Norway on October 31, 2022. The conference had the theme ‘Achieving sustainable development: Bridging the gap between research and policy’.

Kudus Adebayo (cohort 6 graduate, University of Ibadan) participated at the 65th African Studies Association Conference in Philadelphia from November 17-21 where he presented in two panels. First, a Carnegie Corporation-sponsored panel on ‘Women’s role and representation in health, healing, and disability’ where he shared the ongoing CARTA-funded research on the lived experiences of migrating informal caregivers in Nigeria.

The second was on a co-convened panel ‘Sino-African mobilities and chains of connection and dislocation’ where he discussed the topic ‘Triggering delayed transition: racialized pandemic management and return along Nigeria-China migration corridor’.

Cadmus Olubukola (cohort 7 fellow, University of Ibadan) attended the Geriatric Society of America Conference in Indianapolis held between November 2 to 6, 2022. The Annual Scientific Meeting of the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) showcases the latest gerontological (aging) research advancements. This year there were over 3,500 professionals in attendance with over 500 peer-reviewed scientific sessions. The aim was to present original research for the first time from all over the world.

Mapayi Boladale (cohort 4 graduate, Obafemi Awolowo University) was a consultant to the Johns Hopkins Program for International Education in Gynaecology and Obstetrics (Jhpiego) Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH). She led the process of planning and implementing a national Maternal Mental Health (MMH) policy dialogue that took place on November 10, 2022.

As a principal investigator, she also facilitated a five-day finalization meeting for the review of the national HIV prevention documents organized by the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) held between November 7 to 11 in Asaba, Nigeria. This meeting was one of five meetings held over the past year to review the HIV prevention documents for Nigeria.

She was invited as a participant by the Academy of Medical Sciences to a joint policy workshop exploring mental health in Sub-Saharan Africa. The one-and-a-half-day policy workshop was followed by an additional capacity-building workshop which focused on researcher development and enabled the participants to share and discuss good practices and opportunities for researchers building their careers in Sub-Saharan Africa. They had sessions on models of mentoring, coaching, and peer support, as well as regional networks that offer learning and support opportunities, and how to improve and formalize career pathways for researchers in Sub-Saharan Africa where she shared the CARTA model at the meeting. The event took place at Sandton hotel, Johannesburg, South Africa, on November 21-22, 2022.

She was also a facilitator at a closed workshop aimed at equipping student leaders with the knowledge and skills to fight against sexual violence on OAU Campus. This was to flag off the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence in commemoration of the International Day of Elimination of violence against women. The workshop was hosted by the Office of the Vice President of the Obafemi Awolowo University student Union government. She spoke on the topic ‘The role of student leaders in eliminating sexual violence on campus’ and took a module on bystander training for the prevention of sexual violence. The event took place on November 25.

Low-cost glass ionomer cements for eco-friendly practice of dentistry in Kenya

In Kenya, the Oral Health Policy 2022-2030 developed by the Oral Health Department within the Ministry of Health identifies the promotion of the eco-friendly practice of dentistry as one of its objectives. Through a CARTA re-entry grant, Olivia Osiro (cohort 6 graduate, University of Nairobi) is implementing a project that seeks to promote research on affordable mercury-free alternative dental filling materials. Her project is titled ‘Development of low-cost glass ionomer cements for dental restorations’. Read on

University of Rwanda holds 8th graduation ceremony

On November 18, the University of Rwanda held its 2022 graduation ceremony where they graduated 5702 students graduated with various degrees among them 25 PhDs.

University of Nairobi hosts Bill Gates on climate talk

In a hybrid event on ‘Innovating for Food Security and Climate Change in Africa’ the University of Nairobi hosted Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on November 17, 2022. The featured discussions between Gates and live and virtual audiences, students, and beyond and spotlighted challenges and opportunities in food security and climate adaptation in Africa.Also highlighted were examples of African innovations needed to help accelerate progress. Watch the recording

Makerere welcomes new Director of Research and Graduate Training

On November 14, 2022, Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi handed over the office of Director of Research and Graduate Training to his colleague Prof Robert Wamala. Mukadasi, a Professor of Forestry Resource Economics had served in the capacity of Director for 12 years where he led the Research Directorate to provide both graduate students and supervisors a sense of belonging to a meaningful scholarly community. 

Prof Wamala has served in various capacities at Makerere and until his move to the Research Directorate, he was the Deputy Director for Innovations.

Call for abstracts: 19th International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists

The 19th International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists (ICWES19) will take place in Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, from 4-6 September 2023. The conference theme – Shaping the Future – will offer examples of and insights for women studying and working in STEM (science, engineering, technology, and mathematics), and their advocates, and showcase the potential of science and engineering to change the world for the better. Women from around the world are invited to submit their work – from fundamental research projects to examples of how science and engineering are being applied in the real world - to be considered for the program. Details

Deadline: December 9, 2022

Call for Proposals: Global Humanities Institutes 2024

The Consortium of Humanities Centers and Institutes invites proposals for Global Humanities Institutes to take place in 2024. Global Humanities Institutes (GHIs) are multi-year projects devoted to a research theme, method, practice, or problem in the humanities that will benefit directly from a sustained international and collaborative approach. Teams of scholars representing three or four humanities centers, preferably located in at least three different world regions, to develop a research program that is a model for inclusive collaboration in the humanities and addresses matters that are of compelling importance today. With generous support from the Mellon Foundation, we expect to fund two institutes at the level of $200,000 each. Details

Deadline: December 15, 2022

Call for papers: Hunger, food sovereignty, and public health

This Call relates to the 5th Latin American Public Health Meeting taking place in August 2023 in Cali, Colombia. The best article award competition will take place before the meeting. This Call for Papers seeks to collect studies that show the tensions between food shortages and overproduction, the right to food, and public health. We are interested in receiving original articles and reviews on these topics: transformations in agriculture and its relationship with food dependency and hunger; public health-related practices and effects of food industries; the role of self-sustaining food production practices and their relationship with public health; agrarian policies, organizations and social struggle; and people, peasants, various ancestral forms of agriculture and hunger IJPH publishes gold open access. Details

Deadline: December 15, 2022

Call for proposals: Health policy analysis for health taxes

This call for proposals is for up to eight country case studies examining how political economy factors influence the design, adoption, and implementation of health taxes at national or sub-national levels. Informed by qualitative data from key country stakeholders, research teams will develop analytical case studies based on a common conceptual framework. Principal Investigators must be based in an LMIC research institution, but special priority will be given to the following countries: Brazil, China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Paraguay, the United Republic of Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Uganda, Ukraine, and Zambia. The case study proposed should be about one of the above countries. Download call

Deadline: December 23, 2022

Call for proposals: Sustaining agricultural productivity in the face of climate change

The African Agriculture Climate Adaptation Research System funding call responds to “existing food security challenges in the face of climate change” and is geared towards increasing productivity to meet consumption demands and to limit further agricultural land expansion into natural ecosystems. The call is being rolled out through the SFA Foundation’s Grand Challenges Africa (GC Africa) program in partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The African agriculture climate adaptation research system funding will be given to innovative projects that strengthen research, evidence, and processes supporting agriculture-related adaptation planning. This also includes risk management and investment, intra-Africa research collaboration on data, data science, and modeling. Details

Deadline: January 15, 2022

UWC-SOPH postdoctoral fellowship: school health project

The School of Public Health, University of the Western Cape seeks to recruit one full-time Postdoctoral Fellow beginning from January 2023 for one year. The Postdoctoral Fellows will be required to register at the University of the Western Cape and work on a project titled: 'Assessment of Integrated School Health Programmes in eThekwini (Marian Hill), uMzinyathi (Dundee) and Ugu (Port Shepstone) Health Districts in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa' which aims at assessing the implementation of two models of the new integrated school health program in KwaZulu-Natal. Download call



Deadline: December 5, 2022

The POSSIBLE Africa fellowship program

The Preparing Outstanding Social Science Investigators to Benefit Lives and Environments in Africa Programme (POSSIBLE) Africa Fellowship Programme is a 24-month early postdoctoral (graduated within the last 5-10 years) fellowship opportunity for outstanding African scholars in the Social Sciences and Humanities who propose research that aims to create evidence to inform sustainable development within the African continent. POSSIBLE- Africa is a program of the Science for Africa Foundation (SFA Foundation) that is being implemented with funding support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The fellowship opportunity also aligns with the goal of SFA Foundation to address the continent’s most pressing developmental needs by generating knowledge that solves problems and informs decision-making. Details

Deadline: Sunday, December 11, 2022

IARC postdoctoral fellowships for training in cancer research

This call is both for IARC postdoctoral fellows in any fitting area of cancer research, as well as for two specific fellows for cancer research in children, teenagers, and young adults. The fellowships are tenable at IARC and are for a period of two years. Only nationals from Low- and Middle-Income Country (LMICs) are eligible for this call. Candidates are required to have finished their doctoral degree within five years of the closing date for application or must be in the final year of their doctoral degree. The working languages at IARC are English and French. Candidates must be proficient in English at a level sufficient for scientific communication. Details

Deadline: December 16, 2022

Strengthening grants

Strengthening grants offered by Amplify Change are aimed at small to medium civil society organizations from the Global South. Strengthening grants support advocacy projects that seek to engage and contribute to bringing about change in one or more of AmplifyChange’s priority themes. The duration of a Strengthening Grant is 24 to 36 months. We ask applicants to review our Theory of Change and think about which outcome or outcomes they will contribute to through their proposed project. Up to 40% of a strengthening grant can be used to support the costs of organizational development and boost organizational effectiveness. Details 

Deadline: December 6, 2022

Funding: Research advancing social sciences and humanities

The Science for Africa Foundation (SFA Foundation) is announcing a USD million-dollar program to fund research to advance the fields of social sciences and humanities in Africa and to enable the production of evidence to inform sustainable development in Africa. The SFA Foundation’s POSSIBLE Africa Programme is a two-year program implemented with philanthropic support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. POSSIBLE-Africa will support up to 25 African postdoctoral fellowships increasing the number of scholars contributing solutions to challenges facing Africa and the world. Details

Deadline: December 11, 2022

Funding: Research and development of new and preferred contraceptives

The Science for Africa (SFA) Foundation is funding the research and development of new contraceptives that are easy to access and use. The funding call, ‘Strengthening Contraceptive Research and Development (R&D) Ecosystem in Africa: Accelerating Innovations in Non-Hormonal Contraception for Women’ will run over a period of two years through the SFA Foundation’s Grand Challenges Africa (GC Africa) program. SFA Foundation partnering with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will aim to provide up to $350,000 to multidisciplinary consortia consisting of 2-3 researchers preferably based in the same institution to develop novel non-hormonal contraceptives that are safe, effective, easy-to-access, discreet, convenient, do not contain sex steroid hormones or rely on hormonal mechanisms and do not disrupt menstrual patterns. Details

Deadline: December 16, 2022

Funding: Applied global health research

The UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is receiving applications to fund research that will address global health challenges and inequities. UKRI will accept proposals of all sizes, including large research projects and small to medium-scale applications. They seek to develop a portfolio of high-quality global research, which will be diverse, promote multidisciplinarity and strengthen global health research capacity. Encouraged are applications from principal investigators based in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and the UK, working in partnership with LMIC investigators. Details

Deadline: February 16, 2023

Podcast: Connecting Citizens to Science

Connecting Citizens to Science (CCS) is a global health podcast that originates from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) in partnership with the Stop, Collaborate and Listen Agency (the SCL Agency). The podcast was born in January 2022 out of a desire to understand how researchers and scientists work with people and communities in diverse settings and across topics. ​ The podcast has conversations with researchers, policy-makers, patients, survivors, and advocates from across the globe who engage with people and communities to make real changes in global health. Through informal conversations, research methods and disciplinary approaches that are used to co-produce knowledge and solutions to complex challenges are explored. Access here

Pharmacovigilance Library Collection (Uppsala Monitoring Centre)

The Uppsala Monitoring Centre advances the science of pharmacovigilance and supports medicines and patient safety initiatives all over the world. UMC actively gathers publications, guidelines, and resources for anyone interested in pharmacovigilance. To Access UMC’s range of pharmacovigilance research articles and scientific posters, click here.

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.

To be featured in the next CARTA news and updates, send an email to cartacomms@cartafrica.org before October 20, 2022.

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