icipe Director General, Dr Segenet Kelemu receives multiple honours in 2014

In 2014, icipe Director General, Dr Segenet Kelemu was accorded multiple honours from a variety of international organisations.  

In March, Dr Kelemu was among five outstanding women scientists who received the 2014 L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science awards, at a ceremony to be held in Paris, France. The L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science awards are presented each year to honour women scientists who represent unique career paths combining exceptional talent, a deep commitment to their profession and remarkable courage in a field still largely dominated by men. Dr Kelemu was the laureate for Africa and the Arab States, is being honoured for her research on how microorganisms living in symbiosis with forage grasses can improve their capacity to resist disease and adapt to environmental and climate change. Her work is providing new solutions for ecologically responsible food crop production, especially by local, small-scale farmers.

Early in 2014, she was appointed a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS), the continent’s premier honorific society, whose primary aim is to honour internationally renowned African scientists.

Further, Dr Kelemu was featured in Forbes Africa, May 2014 issue, as one of the top 100 most influential African women.

She was also included in a commemorative calendar celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD – under the auspices of TWAS, The World Academy of Sciences). The calendar recognises some of the senior members of the OWSD from eastern and southern Africa for their contribution to gender, science and technology.

Over the 2014 Christmas holiday, Dr Kelemu was the focus of a globally broadcast episode of CNN’s African Voices programme.