News & Updates

October 2023 Edition, Issue 70

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

Annual Graduate Grant Writing Workshop

The residential phase of the 2023 Graduate Workshop (GGWW) commenced on October 3, running up to November 3, 2023. Hosted by CARTA, GGWW is geared towards securing the future and fostering the career growth of its high-achieving graduates. The workshop equips post-doctoral early career researchers and other 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. This year’s GGWW, taking place in Nairobi, Kenya is benefitting 24 CARTA graduates and two observers from Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)and Accra Technical University (ATU). Both institutions are looking to adopt the GGWW intervention.

CARTA at the REDCap Africa Symposium 2023

Members of the CARTA Secretariat attended the REDCap Africa 2023 conference that was held in Cape Town on October 19 - 20, 2023. The event is of significant relevance to CARTA as REDCap is an essential data collection tool in CARTA's operations, research by CARTA fellows, and the program’s monitoring and evaluation efforts. The REDCap Africa Symposium provided a platform for our team to engage with REDCap administrators and users from across Africa, including Prof. Paul Harris, the inventor of REDCap. Further, it offered valuable insights, best practices, and networking opportunities.

Most Innovative Lecturer

CARTA celebrates Sunday Adedini (cohort 1 graduate), an Associate Professor of Demography and the winner of the prestigious 'Most Innovative Lecturer' 2023 Award at Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, Nigeria. In this video interview, Sunday shares how the CARTA program positively shaped his doctoral journey, enabling him to publish 25 research papers in just three years, his role as a CARTA facilitator, and his commitment to quality research and teaching, which has led to this well-deserved recognition. Watch to be inspired!

PhD Completions and Defense



Kellen Joyce Karimi (cohort 7, University of Nairobi) has completed all the requirements of her PhD degree at the University of the Witwatersrand for the thesis ‘Investigation of contamination of community groundwater sources with antibiotics in informal settlements in Kisumu, Kenya’. The degree will be conferred on December 11, 2023, during the graduation ceremony.

Marifa Muchemwa (cohort 10, University of the Witwatersrand) has completed all the requirements of her PhD degree for the thesis ‘Family change, child maintenance and mental health outcomes of men in South Africa’. The degree, a Doctorate of Philosophy in Demography and Population Studies, will be conferred on December 11, 2023, during the graduation ceremony.



Funmito Fehintola (cohort 9, Obafemi Awolowo University) successfully defended her PhD thesis titled ‘Health Literacy Questionnaire Validation and Association with Objectively Assessed Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factors Among In-School Adolescents in Osun State’ on September 18, 2023, at the Institute of Child Health, University of Ibadan, Oyo State.

Evelyne Kantarama (cohort 9, University of Rwanda) successfully defended her PhD thesis titled ‘Effect of Depo Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (DMPA) Injectable Contraceptive on Cardiometabolic Risk Profile Among Women of Reproductive Age in Kigali, Rwanda’ on September 20, 2023. She is scheduled to graduate on November 17, 2023, where she will be conferred with a PhD degree in Biomedical Sciences.



Beryl Maritim (cohort 10, Moi University) had her PhD thesis corrections accepted and is set to graduate from the University of the Witwatersrand on December 11, 2023. Her thesis is titled ‘Examining The Role Of Affordability, Citizen Engagement, And Social Solidarity In Determining Health Insurance Coverage In Kenya’.

Judith Mwansa (cohort 7 graduate, University of the Witwatersrand) has been promoted from the position of Medical Epidemiologist to Senior Epidemiologist at the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, South Africa, effective October 1,  2023.

‪Melvin ‪Ojo Agunbiade (cohort 3 graduate, Obafemi Awolowo University) was promoted to the rank of Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology on October 25, 2023, although the promotion is effective October 2022. Melvin has been serving as an Associate Professor in the same department.

Alice Muhayimana (cohort 10 fellow, University of Rwanda) presented an e-poster on ‘Knowledge and Perceptions on Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights among University of Rwanda: Mixed method study’ during the 24th International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) Word Congress held at Paris, France from October 9 to 12, 2023. More than 8,000 attended the congress at the Paris Convention Centre to learn, share, build alliances, and shape the future of women’s reproductive health.

Lilian Njagi (cohort 9 fellow, University of Nairobi) presented part of her PhD work titled ‘Towards pharmacogenomics-guided tuberculosis (TB) therapy: N-acetyltransferase-2 genotypes among TB-infected Kenyans of mixed ethnicity’ at the Global Genomic Medicine Consortium (G2MC) 7th International Conference in Geneva, Switzerland that was held on October 2 - 4, 2023. Her work is also under review for publication by BMC Medical Genomics.

Emmanuel Kaindoa (cohort 5 graduate, University of the Witwatersrand) delivered a poster presentation on ‘Semi-field evaluation of aquatic predators for the control of Anopheles funestus in rural south-eastern Tanzania’  at the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) annual conference in Chicago, held on October 18 to 22, 2023. The conference provided a platform for networking and collaboration. Emmanuel also had an opportunity to reconnect with some fellows from cohort 6 who were also participating and making presentations on their PhD work.

Photo Caption: Emmanuel Kaindoi (middle) with CARTA cohort 6 graduates Eniola Bamgboye, University of Ibadan (Right) and Justin Kumala, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences (Left).

Anne Maina (cohort 8 graduate, University of Nairobi) received a travel grant from the International Pathogenic Neisseria Conference (IPNC) committee for the IPNC 2023 conference held from September 24 - 29, 2023, in Boston, USA. She delivered a poster presentation based on her PhD work titled ‘Systemic and Mucosal Concentrations of Nine Cytokines Among Individuals with Neisseria gonorrhoeae Infection in Nairobi, Kenya’.

John Alonge (cohort 4 graduate, University of Ibadan) was awarded the Joan van Albada Archivist Training Fund (JvAATF) grant. The grant will facilitate his participation in specialized courses centered on digital records curation and recordkeeping informatics at the University of Amsterdam, alongside an internship at the University of Groningen Library in the Netherlands. This extensive program will run for a duration of six months, from September 2023 to February 2024.

Alexander Kagaha (cohort 7 graduate, Makerere University) facilitated a workshop on 'Reading, Thinking and Writing' for PhD students during the Norwegian Programme for Capacity Development in Higher Education and Research for Development (NORHED) Week and PhD Day at Makerere University, Kampala on October 4, 2023.

Macellina Ijadunola (cohort 6 graduate, Obafemi Awolowo University) attended the COVID-19 Africa Rapid Fund Grant (CARGF) reflection and foresight convening at the National Research Foundation in Pretoria, South Africa from October 23 - 24, 2023. At the gathering, she disseminated research findings from her project supported by the grant investigating ‘Sociocultural Dynamics of Intimate Partner Violence among Women’ during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in Osun State, Nigeria.

Oluwatosin Olorunmoteni (cohort 10 fellow, University of the Witwatersrand) attended the World Sleep Congress held from October 20 - 25, 2023, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She presented two symposium talks based on her PhD: ‘Pediatric Sleep Disparities in Nigeria and the Perceptions of Adolescents, Their Parents, Teachers, and Pediatricians’ (symposium 12) and ‘Sleep Health and Cardio-metabolic Disease Risk in Urban and Rural Nigerian Students’ (symposium 25). 

Additionally, she delivered a presentation on ‘Successful Lab Cases Around the World” in a course themed "Establishing a Pediatric Sleep Lab’. She also participated in a discussion panel titled ‘Promoting Safe Sleep in Pediatric Medical Settings’. During the conference, she graduated as part of the first class of the World Sleep Academy, having participated in the one-year global sleep health training through the World Sleep Academy.

CARTA, APHRC at the 6th University of Nairobi Annual Research Week

With the theme ‘Harnessing Research for Resilience and Sustainability of Community’, the University of Nairobi held its annual research week from October 23 - 27, 2023, that featured various conferences and webinars spread across its ten faculties. The event served as an invitation to researchers, students, and practitioners to collaborate and investigate creative solutions based on research. CARTA Co-Director and Executive Director of the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) delivered the keynote address where she stressed on impactful research, collaboration, and prioritization of community needs. She also stressed the importance of understanding decision-making processes, giving priority to evidence that is pertinent to decision-makers, and being receptive to their needs. Watch the opening ceremony here

University of Rwanda Holds Training of Trainers for CARTA’s PhD Training Modules

Participants drawn from all schools of the University of Rwanda (UR) attended a locally organized Training of Trainers (ToT) on the CARTA Joint Advanced Seminars (JASes) -the program’s PhD training course- between October 23 - 27, 2023. A series of four seminars, CARTA JASes are designed to enhance the skills and knowledge of fellows to guide and propel them through the PhD journey. The workshop brought together 21 academic staff drawn from the 6 UR Colleges and 13 facilitators from CARTA’s partner institutions. It sought to strengthen the facilitation capacity of the UR faculty members to independently carry out JAS intervention as part of CARTA’s mainstreaming efforts. The ToT increased the number of trainers from 6 to 27, giving UR considerable capacity to deliver the CARTA PhD training curriculum using the CARTA innovative approach.

Tributes to Prof. David Ayuku of Moi University, CARTA Facilitator

On October 14, 2023, family, friends and colleagues of David Ayuku gathered to bid a final farewell to Prof. David Ayuku, who left us on September 29, 2023, after a prolonged battle with illness. In honor of David's memory, we would like to share the heartfelt tributes and reflections from his CARTA colleagues and friends who were deeply touched by his presence and contributions to CARTA and Moi University.

Funding: NIHR Global Health Research Groups

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) is pleased to launch Global Health Research Groups Call 5, which supports the development of new partnerships between researchers from the UK and ODA-eligible countries. The partnerships may be for experienced UK researchers pivoting to work globally for the first time or for expanding existing partnerships into new themes and geographies. The NIHR Global Health Research portfolio funds applied health research in areas of unmet need for the direct and primary benefit of people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Details

Approaching Deadline: November 22, 2023

Funding: Gates Foundation and Grand Challenges Partners

Grand Challenges in Global Health aims to encourage the world's best scientists to focus on the biggest problems standing in the way of the health and well-being of billions of people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In the two decades since, other partners have started their own Grand Challenges programs, and together we've created a global network of funders and innovators dedicated to equity in global health and development. Below are the current related requests for proposals. Please click on each for application details and respective deadlines. 

• Catalyzing Equitable Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use to Improve Global Health, launched jointly by several Grand Challenges partners, will enable LMICs to take the lead on designing AI solutions for improving community health and well-being.
• Strengthening Health and Disease Modeling for Public Health Decision Making in Africa, launched jointly between Wellcome and Gates Foundation, will support and grow the ecosystem of public health modelers across the continent.
• Opportunities to Advance Women's Health Innovation will kickstart work to address persistent gaps in women's health R&D worldwide.
• Strengthening Childcare Models that Advance Women's Economic Power will test, compare, and support care models that improve work opportunities and pathways to leadership for women in South Asia and Africa.
• Strengthening African National Regulatory Agencies Data Systems to Enhance and Track Performance will boost emerging African regulatory ecosystems by facilitating the harmonization of technical standards and processes, data generation, and Key Performance Indicator measurement.

Funding: Open Call for Transnational Service Provision

The Horizon Europe-funded project canSERV has launched a call for application to address the research needs of the entire oncology developmental pipeline. Researchers are welcome to apply to a portfolio of services from basic discovery to translational science, translation into personalized oncology, and clinical research. CanSERV services are open to scientists, including researchers from both public and private entities, universities, institutes, high-profile SMEs, and European research consortia in EU member and associated countries. This opportunity is open to both European and non-European researchers, although some limitations apply to users from non-EU/Associated states as they can only represent 20% of the total budget dedicated by canSERV. Proposals can be submitted by a group of scientists. Details

Deadline: January 4, 2024

Fellowship: DHS Fellows Program

The Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Program is now accepting applications for the 2024 DHS Fellows Program. The DHS Fellows Program, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is designed to increase the capacity of countries to conduct further analysis of DHS Program data. The primary objectives of the program are:to teach Fellows to analyze and conduct research with DHS Program data; to strengthen skills that Fellows will use to integrate DHS Program data into their teaching; and to increase the ability of Fellows to strengthen the capacity of others to use DHS Program data at their home universities. The 2024 DHS Fellows Program will be a hybrid delivery with virtual elements and two in-person workshops. Details

Deadline: November 12, 2023

Call for Papers: Digital Transformation, Media and Cultural Industries in the Middle East and North Africa

The Journal of Digital Media and Policy delves into digital media, focusing on structures, markets, and governance. The Journal is currently accepting contributions for a special issue exploring digital transformation's impact on media industries in the Global South (e.g. Middle East and North Africa). Potential papers will be included in a symposium to be organized on March 13, 2024. Details

Approaching Deadline: November 2, 2023

Call for Papers: eLearning Africa 2024 Conference 

The eLearning Africa annual conference and exhibition has announced a call for papers. The conference is a global forum for everyone with an interest in education, training, and skills development in Africa. The 17th Edition of the conference will take place from May 29 to 31, 2024, in Kigali, Rwanda, with the theme 'Education Fuels Innovation, Investment Amplifies Skills' focused on the essential roles of education and skills in national investment and innovation. Details

Approaching Deadline: November 15, 2023

Award: KASH 2024 Rising Star Scientific Award

The mission of the KEMRI Annual Scientific and Health (KASH) Conference is to mainstream the scientific and health research agenda of KEMRI by disseminating, sharing, and digesting various scientific outputs and other allied products. The conference is open to research scientists, health professionals, and graduate and postgraduate students undertaking scientific and health-related courses. This year’s KASH is themed “Harnessing Biomedical Research Innovations and Big Data for Health System Resilience, Local Manufacturing and Commercialization.” In view of improving the quality of presentation, capacity building, and research dissemination from young scientists, KASH has initiated a Rising Star Scientific Award which will be open to the young upcoming scientists. Details

Deadline: December 1, 2023

Grand Challenges 2023 Meeting Videos

The Grand Challenges Africa (GC Africa) program, launched in 2003, seeks to promote Africa-led scientific innovations to help countries better achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by awarding seed and scale-up grants to the continent’s most impressive solutions. This year, GC held its annual meeting in Dakar, Senegal, from October 8 - 11, 2023, under the overall theme of ‘Science Saves Lives’. The gathering explored how the global health community can expand the frontiers of science and innovation to save and improve lives. Over four days, the meeting featured a set of more than 15 scientific tracks, three mainstage plenary sessions, more than 20 roundtable discussions, poster sessions, creative moments, and over 100 side meetings focused on how collaboration, scientists and leaders across the R&D space can accelerate innovation for impact. Watch different proceedings of the meeting here

Report on Mental Health Financing

On World Mental Day, celebrated annually on October 10, the United for Global Mental Health launched its latest report, ‘Financing Mental Health: the current situation and ways forward’. The report underscores the critical need for immediate and sustained investment in mental health worldwide. It represents a significant step forward in our commitment to addressing the pressing financing challenges surrounding mental health and highlights the urgent need for collective action and investment in mental health, which can lead to healthier, more prosperous societies. Download the report here

To be featured in the next CARTA Monthly, share with us your news and updates

via email to cartacomms@cartafrica.org on or before November 28, 2023.

Submissions should include but are not limited to:

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.

www.cartafrica.org