NIGERIANS SHINE AT THE 2013 L'OREAL WOMEN IN SCIENCE AWARDS

Francisca Okeke, a Professor of Physics at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka has recently received the L’Oreal/UNESCO for Women in Science Award for her contribution to the understanding of “daily variations of the ion currents in the upper atmosphere which may further our understanding of climate change.”

UNESCO says Professor Okeke has made the study of the ionosphere her lifetime work and her research could lead to a better understanding of climate change and help pinpoint sources of dramatic phenomena like tsunamis and earthquakes. The ionosphere lies between 50km and 1000kms above the earth surface.

In an interview with UNESCO, Okeke disclosed that the award is a big challenge and has strengthened her to continue to encourage girls and women to participate in the development of science and technology by offering these core sciences courses in schools and universities. This according to her invariably furthers the development of a Nation.

Professor Okeke was the first female Head of Department at THE University of Nsukka and former Dean in the faculty of Physical Sciences at UNN from 2008 – 2010. She is a huge inspiration to women in the sciences and we’re really inspired by the work she is doing. She was the only recipient in that category from Africa and the Arab nations and the third Nigerian Laureate since the UNESCO-L’Oreal partnership was established in 1998. Professor Okeke got a prize of $100,000.

Among the L’Oreal – UNESCO awardees was another Nigerian female scientist, Dr Eucharia Nwaichi, an environmental bio-chemist from the University of Port Harcourt joined who won in the “International Fellows’’ category. Nwaichi is a lecturer and postdoctoral researcher with a PhD in biochemistry. She studies how to clean polluted soil in Niger Delta with two local plant species.

The awards were announced last year October, but the award ceremony took place early this month in Paris. The international jury which selected the 2013 awardees was led by Nobel Prize winner, Mr Ahmed Zewail.