Cambridge-Africa Day 2015
- The photographs and videos for the second annual Cambridge-Africa Day can be viewed here
The 2015 Cambridge-Africa Day was held on Friday 23 October at St John's College, Cambridge.
Key note speakers were Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa the Vice Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda.
Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz
On 1 October 2010 Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz became the 345th Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He was Chief Executive of the UK's Medical Research Council from 2007. From 2001 to 2007, he was at Imperial College London, and served as Principal of the Faculty of Medicine and later as Deputy Rector. Concurrently with his position at Imperial College, Sir Leszek was also Governor of the Wellcome Trust (2006-2007), Chairman of the UK Clinical Research Collaboration's Integrated Academic Training Awards Panel (2005-2007), and Chair of the HEFCE RAE Main Panel A Assessment Panel.
Professor Borysiewicz was knighted in the 2001 New Year's Honours List for his contribution to medical education and research into developing vaccines, including work towards a vaccine to combat cervical cancer.
Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa
Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa was appointed Vice Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda in May 2011. Prior to that, she served in the Government of Rwanda’s Cabinet from October 2003 to May 2011, where she held two portfolios as Minister of Trade and Industry (2008-2011) and Minister of State in charge of Economic Planning (2003-2008).
Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa is an Economist by training, and holds a PhD in Economics and a MA Cum Laude in Economics, both from the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa. She taught Economics at the National University of Rwanda from 1999 to 2003. She is fluent in English and French. She is a Fellow of the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Executive Education in Public Financial Management, and a Fellow of the Africa Leadership Initiative East Africa and the Aspen Global Leadership Network.
Programme for Cambridge-Africa Day 2015
9:30 - 10:00 Registration, Tea/Coffee; Fisher Foyer
10:00 – 10:10 Professor David Dunne (Director of the Cambridge-Africa Programme): Welcome
10:10 – 10:30 Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz (Vice Chancellor of the University of Cambridge): Morning Keynote Address
Session 1: Cambridge-Africa Research Collaborations
Chair: Professor Pauline Rose (REAL Centre, Faculty of Education, Cambridge)
10:30 – 11:00 Professor James Wood (Disease Dynamics Unit; Head, Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge) and Professor Yaa Ntiamoa-Baidu (Department of Animal Biology and Conservation Science; Director, Centre for African Wetlands, Ghana Champion for the CAPREx Initiative, and Ex-Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Development - ORID, University of Ghana, Legon) Collaborative investigations on persistence and transmission of zoonotic viruses in and from bats in Ghana; fruitful collaborations between Ghana and the UK
11:00 – 11:30 Dr Tinashe Chiurugwi (Research Associate, NIAB, Cambridge; Cambridge-Africa ALBORADA grant recipient) Promoting Adoption of Sustainable Agricultural Practices in Southern Tanzania
11:30 – 12:00 Dr Saudah Namyalo (Makerere University, Uganda; CAPREx Fellow) “The Professor Hit the Arcade”: Understanding Youth Urban-Language Practices in Uganda
12:00 – 12:30 Dr Wilber Ahebwa (Makerere University) and Dr Chris Sandbrook (United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre, Cambridge) Linking Communities through Conservation and Tourism in Uganda
12:30 - 13:30 Lunch Break, St. John’s College Hall
Africa-related posters can be viewed in the Fisher Foyer
13:30 – 14:00 Dr Monique Nsanzabaganwa (Vice Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda) Afternoon Keynote Address: Examining an African Democratic Developmental State as a Pragmatic Indigenous Alternative to Neo Liberalism: A supporting Role for Indigenous Research and Research Collaboration.
To be introduced by Dr Shailaja Fennel (Centre of Development Studies, University of Cambridge)
Session 2: How Can Cambridge-Africa Support African Partners?
Chair: Professor James Wood (Department of Veterinary Medicine, Cambridge)
14:00 – 14:30 Dr Dan Masiga (Head of the Molecular Biology Unit and co-PI for the THRiVE Consortium at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology - icipe, Kenya) Keeping Standards High When Engaging In Africa: the Example of THRiVE and ARPPIS
14:30 – 15:00 Professor Alison Elliott [Uganda Virus Research Institute – UVRI; Director of the Makerere University - UVRI Infection and Immunity (MUII) Training Programme in Uganda] Infection and Immunity Research and Training in Uganda
15:00 – 15:30 Ms Irene Tamajong (Director, AIMS Next Einstein Initiative, UK) The African Institute of Mathematical Sciences (AIMS): AIMS-Cambridge Building a Partnership for African Excellence
15:30-15:50 Tea/Coffee Break, Fisher Foyer
Session 3: Other Support for Africa from Cambridge
Chair: Dame Barbara Stocking (President, Murray Edwards College, Cambridge)
15:50 – 16:20 Dr Lucia Prieto-Gordino (Cambridge alumna; Co-founder of ‘Teaching and Research in Natural Sciences for Development (TReND) in Africa’): Supporting Development Through Scientific Empowerment: from a Cambridge Student Initiative to a Global Movement
16:20 – 16:40 Mrs Helen Pennant (Director, Cambridge Trust) Building Capacity and Supporting Students: the Role of the Cambridge Trust in Supporting African Students
16:40 – 16:55 Ms Mandy Hill (Managing Director, Academic publishing, Cambridge University Press) Cambridge University Press: Supporting African Research
16:55 – 17:25 Professor Ian Goodfellow (Head of Virology Division, Department of Pathology, Cambridge) Supporting the Fight Against Ebola in West Africa
17:25 – 17:30 Dr Pauline Essah (Cambridge-Africa Programme Manager): Concluding Remarks
17:30 – 18:45 Drinks Reception for all in the Fisher Foyer (with African music)
Please return your name badge to the registration desk for recycling. Thank you