Young Scientist Webinar: Africa Youth Month with Rita Mwima and Hudson Onen
November is Africa Youth Month, and this year we are shining the spotlight on two scientists working to end malaria in Uganda.
Rita Mwima and Hudson Onen are part of the team at the Uganda Virus Research Institute.
Rita is a computational biologist using population genetics and mathematical modeling to study malaria vector dynamics. Her PhD research examines how malaria-transmitting mosquitoes persist through dry seasons and rapidly rebound with rainfall. These are insights that support evaluation of new vector control tools, including gene drive, and can guide malaria control strategies in Uganda and across Africa.
“The youth are the core engine to the future.”
Rita Mwima, Target Malaria Uganda
Hudson is the Field Entomology Lead and a final-year PhD student in the Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences at Makerere University. He began working with the Uganda Virus Research Institute in 2016 with Target Malaria, studying aquatic macro-invertebrates in Anopheles gambiae s.l. larval habitats. His PhD focuses on the adaptive oviposition behavior of An. gambiae s.l. in relation to environmental factors, with fieldwork at Ifakara Health Institute in Tanzania.
During the webinar, we touched on their career journey’s so far and their hopes for the future of science and innovation in Africa and the role of youth in shaping it.
Webinar recording will be available shortly!
