The Magazine 2.18 Africa The Magazine New generation The Next Einstein Forum is bringing young scientists from the continent together Reconciliation in Rwanda Where the victims and perpetrators of the genocide live as neighbors Please don’t help? Putting development Africa cooperation to the test Will the next Einstein be from Africa? 2.18 THE MAGAZINE Editorial 3 2.18 Dear Readers, It’s high time to show a new side of Africa! When it comes to this continent, there is more to discuss than what tends to dominate the headlines – hardship, corruption and war. This issue primarily focuses on the potential of its talented young people. Take, for example, scientist Tolullah Oni from Nigeria, shown on our cover page. She is one of the fellows of the Next Einstein Forum (NEF), the largest African science conference to date – which took place for the second time this year. The NEF was created in partnership with the Rob- ert Bosch Stiftung. Our involvement in Africa has many other facets. Read, for example, about impres- sive people working toward peace and the resolving of conflicts, or learn why an African Robert Bosch Academy fellow considers development aid a mistake. We hope you enjoy the read! Joachim Rogall, Uta-Micaela Dürig, Sandra Breka, Hans-Werner Cieslik Board of Management of the Robert Bosch Stiftung 4 Contents Robert Bosch Stiftung 12 14 24 06 12 20 Facts: Expensive Snapshot: Vision for the Future: milk, smartphones, How Kenyan filmmaker Entrepreneur and philan- Nollywood – this, too, Mbithi Masya feels after a thropist Mo Ibrahim is all part of Africa semester as an exchange and former President of student in Germany Germany Horst Köhler 08 talk about the future of Beginnings: Why 14 Africa medicine, Tolullah Oni? Conference: We The successful professor accompany Hamidou 24 tells us what inspired Tembine, the child Technology: Young her research of simple farmers and Ivorians are developing now Professor for drones and intelligent 10 Electrical and Computer software to make Contrasts: What Engineering, to the Next uncultivated fields in made geophysicist Einstein Forum 2018, West Africa productive Tolulope Olugboji go currently Africa’s largest to the USA – and why science conference 32 chemist Ghada Bassioni Debate: Should stayed in Cairo development coopera- tion with Africa be brought to an end? THE MAGAZINE 5 2.18 32 38 36 44 You’ll encounter Infographic: The Behind the scenes: some of Africa’s organization ESSA is Mary Maina is a best young scientists rising to the enormous student assistant for the in this issue. They challenges posed by Next Einstein Forum – are Next Einstein the education sector in and captain of the Rwan- Forum fellows – an sub-Saharan Africa dan national cricket team initiative created by the African Institute 38 46 for Mathematical Reconciliation: Victims Column: Sciences (AIMS) and and perpetrators of the Ten questions to our the Robert Bosch Rwandan genocide live readers by Aku Kwamie Stiftung. next door to each other Tolullah Oni, Page 08 in a village south of Kigali Tolulope Olugboji and Ghada Bassioni, Page 10 Hamidou Tembine, Page 14 Peter Ngene and 42 Aminata Garba, Page 18 Yabebal Fantaye and In brief: News from Sanushka Naidoo, Page 19 projects and areas Aku Kwamie, Page 46 supported by the Robert Bosch Stiftung Imprint PUBLISHER Robert Bosch Stiftung GmbH, Heidehofstraße 31, 70184 Stuttgart, Germany, [email protected], www.bosch-stiftung.de | BOARD OF MANAGEMENT Prof. Dr. Joachim Rogall, Uta-Micaela Dürig, Sandra Breka, Dr. Hans-Werner Cieslik | RESPONSIBLE Stefan Schott, Senior Vice President of Strategic Communications | PROJECT MANAGEMENT Regina Mennig | MANAGING EDITORS Martin Petersen, Nicole Zepter | PUBLISH- ING COMPANY TERRITORY Content to Results GmbH, Bei den Mühren 1, 20457 Hamburg, Germany, www.territory.de | MANAGING DIRECTORS Soheil Dastyari, Sandra Harzer-Kux | PUBLISHING MANAGEMENT Eva Willaschek | ART DIRECTION Maja Nieveler, Anne Stiefel | PHOTO EDITOR Vanessa Zeeh | PRINT Merkur Druck GmbH, Oststraße 49, 22844 Norderstedt, Germany, merkur-druck.com | ISSN NO. 1865-0910 | COVER PHOTO Lêmrich 6 Facts A Continent in Flux Expensive milk, smartphones, Nollywood – this, too, is all part of Africa. Africa has the second- largest market for mobile phones after Asia. At least 61 million children Nigeria’s of primary school age do not attend school. film industry produces more 1/3 feature films each year of researchers born in Africa live Marktwirtschaft Stiftung Study, of Living Cost 2018, 2017 Mercer Rankings University 8/25/2016, Times Higher Education World from than and Hollywood work outside DIE ZEIT does. of Africa. In Luanda, Angola’s capital, a liter of milk costs 2.43 euros. 4 trillion US dollars have been 7 out of 10 distributed as development aid since of the best universities 1960, yet living in Africa are located conditions have failed in South Africa. to improve. Africa’s share of world trade shrank Report, Global Education Monitoring German 11/20/2014, 2017/18 UNESCO newspaper from in the same period NZZ from seven to just under three percent. The city is one of the most expensive in the world. Sources: Swiss newspaper newspaper Swiss Sources: Science Report Bank, 2010 UNESCO 7/13/2017, African Development from dw.de Welle, Deutsche outlet Africa at German news for Head of Programs zu Marktwirtschaft No. 128, 1/15, Claus Stäcker, und Politik,” “Argumente Economy), Market for (Foundation More than one third of Africa’s inhabitants now belong to the middle class.* * According to a study conducted by the African Development Bank, more than one out of every three people in Text and research: Jan Abele | Photos: Kent Andreasen (2); Nick Turner/EyeEm/Getty Images; Edouard Tamba/unsplash Images; Edouard Turner/EyeEm/Getty (2); Nick Andreasen Kent Jan Abele | Photos: and research: Text Africa earns between 2.20 and 20 dollars a day, making them part of the middle class. 8 Tolullah Oni If you’re hoping to bump into Nigerian physician and epidemiologist Tolullah Oni, the best place to do so is during an early morning run at 6 a.m., as our photo demonstrates. Oni is so in demand that her time is limited, to say the least. The physician researches the relationship between disease progression and social and economic conditions. She was born in Nigeria in 1980, studied medicine in London and is currently teaching at the University of Cape Town. THE MAGAZINE Beginnings 9 2.18 Doctor 2.0 Tolullah Oni thought she would become a heart surgeon, but then she discovered the healthcare sector and she changed track. support system. They always encour- what time it was due to other factors, aged me. When I got the opportunity such as the position of the sun. These to attend secondary school in the Unit- small but crucial questions are what ed Kingdom, my parents, bearing in make up my work. And I want to share mind my early desire to become a sur- this enthusiasm with my students as geon, chose Epsom College, which well. I want to contribute to the pool of was founded by a British Royal Medical knowledge surrounding disease pat- Foundation doctor more than 150 terns – and about the impacts urbaniza- years ago. I experienced yet another tion has on health. I want to focus on boost towards my professional ca- health, not on disease. To do so, I start- reer during my last year as a medical ed a project at my university called student at University College London. the “Urban Health Group,” which allows I took an elective course in interna- for an exchange of knowledge about tional health, a subject somewhat on disease prevention between different the peripheral, unpopular side. It areas of expertise. The image of became my subject – and that academ- being a heart surgeon survived quite ic year my “year of thinking.” It was a long time, by the way. A distant the first time that I perceived medicine uncle came to visit me once during my a science. All of a sudden there were studies in London. When he greeted more questions than answers: about the me he said, “So, you’re the heart development and outbreak of diseases, surgeon.” I had by then already forgot- the economic and social conditions ten that image. What had remained and the measures to take in order to with me was the connection to the child stem the tide of an epidemic. I worked of the same age undergoing that for Doctors Without Borders and operation. It unleashed something so was just eight years old the first time spent a year working in intensive care in special in me: the knowledge that I saw an open-heart surgery. In a Australia, but the idea that people’s we are all connected to one another. report on television,I performed on environment and behavior itself could The awareness of this connection a child the same age I was. To this influence diseases had already taken is what shapes my work. day, I have no idea why it was being hold of me by that point. Things really shown on television. I only know came home to me while working on a that it fascinated me and, even at such research project: patients with a chron- a young age, made me think, “How ic illness were supposed to take med- do the insides of the body work?” And: icine at specific times of the day. How- “I have to become a heart surgeon.” ever, the project never ended up taking I was born in Lagos, Nigeria. I am the place and they were never given the “I want to focus second of four children, my mother medicine – simply because they didn’t on health, not on teaches French and my father is an ex- own a watch! Yet even though they ecutive at a company.