Neema Mduma
| Email: | neema.mduma@nm-aist.ac.tz |
| Website: | Browse |
Home Institution
The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, Department of Information and Communication Science and Engineering, Assistant Lecturer
Biosketch
Neema is a PhD fellow and assistant lecturer at the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology. Her focus is on supporting education, and presently she is conducting a study on developing a data-driven approach for predicting student dropout in secondary schools. Neema participated in several national and international conferences for the aim of promoting machine learning and artificial intelligent within Africa.
Research Interests and societal interests
Developing a data driven approach to address the problem of student dropout faced by secondary schools in developing countries:
- The use of available data in eliminating dropout problem
- Establishment of the extent to which factors contribute to dropout
- Influence of locality as one of the factors which include climate and remoteness on dropout problem
Expectations as a QES Scholar during the Mobility Period
- The Queen Elizabeth Scholarship (QES) program will bring different people from different places, with different culture, skills and knowledge. This will be an opportunity for me to learn from others and build a network for future collaborations
- During mobility period, Neema will use that opportunity to improve her manuscripts for publications. Currently she is writing a manuscript on student dropout in relation to climate change, a case of pastoralists and farmers societies in Tanzania
- QES will provide an opportunity for Neema to present her research ideas and receive feedback from others
- Mentoring with climate change experts will add value in her manuscript for publications in the reputable journals
The QES Project and Advancement of your Career
As an academic staff, teaching, research and providing consultations are Neema’s passion. She has an initiative which aims to inspire and motivate young girls to build an interest in data science, machine learning and artificial intelligence and establish a strong foundation that will cement the understanding of the value of data science in solving community problems. The QES program will strengthen Neema’s ideas and create a strong research collaboration with different experts inside and outside Africa. As a young scientist, she believes that the knowledge gap in Sub Saharan Africa is the single greatest need that Africans should strive towards attaining Science, Technology and Innovation excellence.