AFRICAN VOICES: Segenet Kelemu - Wow Factor Inspires Ethiopian Scientist, First Woman To Head The International Centre For Insect Physiology And Ecology!
January 9, 2015 - ETHIOPIA - Dr Segenet Kelemu is the fourth Director General of the International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) in Nairobi, Kenya, and the first woman to lead icipe.
Born in Ethiopia, Dr Kelemu has experienced the challenges and successes associated with African agriculture first-hand, from tending the field to directing world-class laboratories.
She is a molecular plant pathologist with emphasis on elucidation of molecular determinants of host-pathogen interactions, development of novel plant disease control strategies including genetic engineering, biopesticides, pathogen population genetics and dynamics and endophytic microbes and their role in plant development.
After post-doctoral work at Cornell University in the USA, Segenet joined the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) as a Senior Scientist in 1992 and was later appointed Leader of Crop and Agroecosystem Health Management. CIAT recognised her numerous contributions to the centre and its mission with their Outstanding Senior Scientist Award.
After twenty-five years of studying and successfully applying cutting-edge science outside of Africa, Dr Kelemu returned from the diaspora to contribute to Africa’s development.
In 2007, she became the Director of the Biosciences eastern and central Africa (BecA) Hub at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Nairobi, Kenya. Under her leadership, the BecA initiative grew from a contentious idea into a driving force that is changing the face of African biosciences. BecA’s research capacity, staff, facilities, funding, partners and training programs have expanded at an ever-accelerating pace. She assembled and inspired a scientific and technical team bound by a common passion for using science to enhance Africa’s biosciences development.
Prior to becoming the Director General of icipe, she was Vice President for Programs at the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).
Segenet was featured in the top 100 most influential African women of 2014 in Forbes Africa and has been celebrated with numerous awards.
In 2014 she was named the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Laureate for Africa, one of five Laureates chosen from around the world for their leadership and scientific excellence.
The People's Republic of China awarded her their prestigious Friendship Award, granted to foreign experts who have made outstanding contributions to China's economic and social development.
She has been elected a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences, and was awarded The World Academy of Sciences 2011 TWAS Prize for Agricultural Sciences jointly with Prof Zia Khan – the first African to win this prize since its inception.
Segenet continues to publish widely in refereed journals, book chapters, manuals, conference/workshop papers, working documents, and others. A natural teacher, over the years she has taken many BSc, MSc, and PhD students under her wing. - ICIPE.
WATCH: Segenet Kelemu - Wow Factor Inspires Ethiopian Scientist. [Part 1-3]
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