Carleton Announces the Second Cohort of QES Advanced Scholars West Africa Program
Carleton University’s Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Advanced Scholars West Africa (QES-AS-WA) program is pleased to announce the selection of nine scholars for its second and final cohort in the current funding cycle. The selection of the nine distinguished West African late doctoral and early career women scholars from an impressive 297 applications followed a detailed evaluation by the esteemed governing committee members and Research Placement Partners.
Carleton University is delighted to unveil the nine outstanding scholars who will be joining the program in early spring 2024:
- Adwoa-Owusuaa-Bobie: Early Career Researcher, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana
- Celina Onyawoibi Aju-Ameh: Early Career Researcher, Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo (FUHSO), Benue, Nigeria
- Chimaobim Ijeoma Enendu: PhD candidate, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Nigeria
- Eugenia Ama Breba Anderson: Early Career Researcher, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana
- Gloria Boko Epse Agbo: PhD candidate, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, Benin
- Jane Chinyere Ezirigwe: Early Career Researcher, Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, Nigeria
- Loukaïya Zorobouragui: PhD candidate, Université de Parakou, Benin
- Ruth Aba Tobi Sawyerr: PhD candidate, University of Ghana, Legon
- Zainab Musa Shallangwa: PhD in Cultural Studies, University of Maiduguri, Nigeria
Carlerton’s QES-AS-WA program, Wurin ta na yin rubutu – Her own room to write, is designed to provide an opportunity to gain experience through travel to Carleton University and/or across West Africa to one of our research placement partners. The scholarship provides for research supervision, focused seminars, experiential learning through aligning the research proposal with research placement opportunities (see Placement Partners), leadership, and network building. There were six scholars in the first cohort of scholars who were in residence in the summer of 2023.
Carleton University is one of 11 Canadian universities that receive funding from the new Queen Elizabeth Scholars (QES) Advanced Scholars West Africa program to work together to find solutions to the world’s increasingly complex challenges. The project is led by Nduka Otiono, a distinguished scholar and Director of Carleton’s Institute of African Studies in collaboration with colleagues at Carleton, various African partners including and Professor Aisha Ibrahim, assistant deputy vice-chancellor of Fourah Bay College at the University of Sierra Leone. Others include Heloise Emdon, Manager, International Projects, and Farhana Moshira, the International Project Coordinator.
The external project partners include IMPACT-Partnership Africa, CODE, Africa-Canada Chamber of Commerce, Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), Saint Paul University and Africa Trade Desk.
The Canadian Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarships (QES) is managed through a unique partnership of Universities Canada, the Rideau Hall Foundation (RHF), and Canadian universities. The QES-AS West Africa program is made possible with financial support from IDRC. The QES program was created in 2014 to improve global talent exchange between Canada and other nations. The program aims to develop the next generation of innovative leaders and community builders by providing enriched academic, professional, and cross-cultural experiences and by facilitating lasting local and global community engagement.
Speaking on the selected scholars for the final round of the Carleton QES-AS-WA program Professor Otiono noted that the new set is more competitive and covers a wider geographic spread. He underscored the large number of entries as indicative of the popularity of the Carleton QES-AS-WA program and regretted that only nine spots could be offered. “I wish we could extend more opportunities to the extremely qualified women applicants,” he said, adding: “We hope to pursue related opportunities in the future.”