DAY 3 (MARCH 10, 2016)



09:30 – 09:50

  • NEF Fellows Spotlight Session 4
  • Noble Banadda (NEF Fellow, Uganda)
  • Alta Schutte (NEF Fellow, South Africa)


09:50 – 10:50

  • Plenary Panel 4: Toward a Sustainable Water-Energy-Food Nexus in Africa
  • The discussion will explore the convergence of science (physical, computational and social), engineering, technology, policy and entrepreneurship to understand and manage the impact of Global Climate Change in Sub-Saharian Africa in order to achieve a Sustainable Water-Energy-Food Nexus. A great challenge facing Africa in the 21st century is to continue to provide better living conditions to its people while managing and minimizing the impact of global climate change (GCC) on the availability of basic necessities such as water, energy and food.

    The panel will address the questions:
    • What will be needed at the regional and local levels to manage and minimize the adverse impact of GCC on the Water-Energy-Food Nexus in Sub-Saharan Africa?
    • What R&D strategies, government policies and business incentives would be needed to accelerate the development and implementation of robust, cost effective and scalable solutions to achieve a Sustainable Water-Energy-Food Nexus in Sub-Saharan Africa?

  • Opening Remarks – Adesina Akinwumi (President, African Development Bank Group)
  • Moderator – Mamadou Diallo (Professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and California Institute of Technology (Caltech))
  • Rocio A Diaz-Chavez (Research Fellow, Imperial College London)
  • Sherien Elagroudy (NEF Fellow, Egypt)
  • Rush D. Holt (CEO, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS))
  • Amilcare Porporato (Addy Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Duke University)


10:50 – 11:20

  • COFFEE BREAK


11:20 – 11:40

  • NEF Fellows Spotlight Session 5
  • Hallowed Olaoluwa (NEF Fellow, Nigeria)
  • Moustapha Fall (NEF Fellow, Senegal)
  • Amanda Weltman (NEF Fellow, South Africa)


11:40 – 12:45

  • Plenary Panel 5: Developing a national science strategy including curiosity-driven science
  • Developing countries face the necessary tension between utilizing funding for scientific research which meets pressing and immediate needs, but basic research is scientific capital. This panel will share best- practice examples from some of today’s global scientific leaders.
    • Concrete suggestions on developing national science policies for developing countries.
    • Concrete suggestions for the integration of curiousity-driven science funding into national funding strategies
  • Moderator – HE Minister Mary Teuw Niane (Minister of Higher Education and Research, Senegal
  • Jean-Pierre Bourguignon (President, European Research Council)
  • France Córdova (Director, US National Science Foundation)
  • HE Papias Musafiri (Minister of Education, Rwanda)
  • Molapo Qhobela (CEO, National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa)
  • Peter Strohschneider (President, German Research Foundation)


11:20 – 12:45

  • Competition – NEF Challenge of Invention to Innovation (NEF Ci2i)
  • The NEF is excited to host the first edition of the NEF Challenge of Invention to Innovation (Ci2i), a competition for young and talented Africans. A select group of finalists from the NEF Ambassadors’ Programme and other young attendees will pitch their ideas in front of a live audience and a judging panel comprised of NEF Fellows and influential industry, society and academic leaders. The winner will be announced at the closing ceremony and supported by the NEF to turn the idea into a project.
  • Moderator – Seema Kumar (Vice President, Innovation, Global Health, and Science Policy Communication, Johnson & Johnson)


12:45 – 14:00

  • LUNCH


14:00 – 14:25

  • Competition – NEF Challenge of Invention to Innovation (NEF Ci2i) Final Round
  • The top three finalists of the NEF Challenge of Invention to Innovation (Ci2i), will pitch again and a winner will be announced.


14:25 – 14:35

  • NEF Ambassadors Award Ceremony
  • Katy Cisse Wone – NEF Africa Director


14:40 – 14:50

  • NEF Fellows Spotlight Session 6
  • Mohlopheni Jackson Marakalala (NEF Fellow, South Africa)
  • Evelyn Gitau (NEF Fellow, Kenya)


14:50 – 16:00

  • Plenary Panel 6: The Bleeding Edge of Science – Discoveries from Nobel Laureates and Fields Medalists From Around the World
  • This session will present some of the greatest discoveries in science and technology in the world. Showcasing the leading edge of science from Nobel Laureates and Fields Medalist, this session will highlight their achievements and include an interactive dialogue between five NEF Fellows and the internationally-recognized scientists

  • Opening Remarks – Yuko Harayama (Executive Member, Council for Science and Technology Policy, Cabinet Office of Japan)
  • Moderator – Sir Philip Campbell (Editor-in-Chief, Nature Group)
  • Jerome Friedman (Video Message) (Nobel Prize in Physics 1990, United States)
  • Cedric Villani (Fields Medalist 2010, France)
  • Amanda Weltman, Joseph Ben Geloun, Moustapha Fall, Ghada Bassioni, Wilfred Ndifon, Axel Ngonga (NEF Fellows)


16:00 – 16:10

  • Announcements
  • International Mathematical Union (Christiane Rousseau)
  • ADEA (Oley Dibba-Wada)


16:10 – 17:00

  • Closing Ceremony
  • Ten Key recommendations from the NEF Global Gathering – Thierry Zomahoun
    (Next Einstein Forum Chairperson and President and CEO of AIMS Next Einstein Initiative)
  • Remarks – Ingrid Wuenning Tschol (Robert Bosch Stiftung)
  • Remarks – Seema Kumar (Johnson & Johnson)
  • Major Announcements – HE Martial De Paul Ikounga (Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology, African Union Commission)
  • Handover to Rwanda, with cultural performance
  • Closing Remarks – HE President Macky Sall (President, Senegal)