Women and science: 10 women researchers that stand out in Africa

On the occasion of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science celebrated on February 11th, we look back at the journey of 10 African women scientists who stand out in Africa. On the continent, women represent only 31.8% of researchers and scientists, according to a report by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics in 2019.

Faith Osier (Kenya), Medicine

Faith Osier is known for her research on immunology and malaria. She is a professor at the University Hospital in Heidelberg, Germany and at the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust research program in Kilifi, Kenya. Since October 2019, she has been head of the International Union of Immunological Societies. In 2016, she won the Sofia Kovalevskaya Prize of the Alexander Von Humboldt Foundation.

Marie Korsaga (Burkina Faso), Astrophysics

Marie Korsaga is a young astrophysicist from Burkina Faso. In 2019, she defended her doctoral thesis at the « Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille » in France on the “Distribution of baryonic and non-baryonic matter in spiral and irregular galaxies”. She is one of the few women in Africa to enter this still masculine “universe”. 

Francine Ntoumi (Congo), Medicine

Francine Ntoumi is a Congolese molecular biologist specialized in malaria. As a specialist of infectious diseases, she has worked on the Ebola epidemic in Congo Brazzaville. She is currently part of a team of eight researchers involved in the study of Covid-19 and its emerging infectious risks worldwide. In 2012, she received the African Union Kwame Nkrumah Prize for Women Scientists. 

Senamile Masango (South Africa), Nuclear physics

Senamile Masango is a young South African nuclear physicist. She has a degree in nuclear physics from the University of Cape Town and has been a member of the Board of the Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa (NECSA) since January 2020. An organization that promotes research and development in the field of nuclear energy. She is currently pursuing a PhD in nuclear physics at the University of Western Cape and conducts her research at the Canadian laboratory Triumf.

Julie Makani (Tanzania), Medicine

Julie Makani is known for her research in the treatment of sickle cell disease. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Hematology and Blood Transfusion at Muhimbili University of Health and Related Sciences in Dar Salam. She has conducted one of the world’s most important research on sickle cell disease by monitoring more than 2000 patients with the disease.

Tebello Nyokong (South Africa), Chemistry 

Tebello Nyokong is a South African chemist. Specialised in medicinal chemistry and nanotechnology, she has been conducting research for years on photochemotherapy. An alternative to chemotherapy, which kills cancer cells without damaging healthy ones. She received several awards for her research, including the Kwame Nkrumah Scientific Prize awarded by the African Union in 2016 and L’Oréal Prize for “Women in Science” awarded by L’Oréal Foundation in 2009.

Hasnaa Chennaoui (Morocco), Geology

Hasnaa Chennaoui Aoudjehane is a lecturer-researcher in geology and meteorites at Hassan II University – Casablanca. Holder of a PhD in 1992 on the geochemistry of rare gases, she is a member of the Meteoritical Society’s International Meteorite Nomenclature Committee. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Association for the Protection of Moroccan Geological Heritage. She advocates for the preservation of the geological heritage of meteorites in Morocco. 

Wendy Okolo (Nigeria), Aerospace  

The Nigerian Wendy Okolo is an aerospace research engineer at the Ames Centre, a major hub of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in Silicon Valley. She did an internship at Lockheed Martin, where she worked on NASA’s Orion space probe. She also held a research position in the controls design and analysis branch of the Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright Patterson Air Force Base.

Raja Aghzadi (Morocco), Medicine

Raja Aghzadi is a Moroccan oncologist and surgeon specialized in breast cancer. She has more than 20 years of surgical practice and more than 10 years of professorship. She holds several diplomas in ultrasound, digestive surgery, cancerology and senology, among others. She is the president of the Association for the Fight against Breast Cancer, “Coeur de Femmes”.

Devina Lobine (Mauritius), neuropharmacology

Devina Lobine is a Mauritian researcher. Specialist in neuropharmacology, she dedicates her research to the study of the properties of medicinal plants that can slow down the effects of Alzheimer’s disease. In 2020, she received the l’Oréal/UNESCO Prize for her research and academic excellence.