Over the past years, our research centre has maintained strong and sustained collaborations with mathematicians and academic institutions across Africa. These activities reflect our collective commitment to supporting mathematical research, advanced training, and international cooperation, particularly in regions where access to high-quality supervision remains limited.
Our engagement began several years ago with visits to the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) Ghana, where members of our centre contributed to graduate-level teaching through lecture courses for MSc and PhD students. Further activities included intensive lecture courses in Burkina Faso, supported by the Volkswagen Stiftung (Germany), carried out under challenging circumstances. Despite such difficulties, our group has continued to visit and collaborate with multiple African countries, focusing on capacity building and student support.
Some of these early activities are documented in a research volume edited by members of our group together with international collaborators:
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-05657-5
After our centre’s activities expanded to Ghent University, these collaborations continued and strengthened. Notable examples include:
- Dr. Markos Fisseha Yimer (University of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), who received an IMU–Simons Research Fellowship for a research visit to Ghent University, hosted by our group: https://analysis-pde.org/2024/11/13/imu-simons-research-fellowship-award-for-developing-countries/, he successfully defended his PhD thesis under co-supervision by Prof Michael Ruzhansky: https://analysis-pde.org/2024/02/09/congratulations-to-dr-markos-fisseha-yimer/
- IMU–Simons African Fellowships awarded to Abimbola Abolarinwa (University of Lagos, Nigeria) and Narciso Gomes (University of Cabo Verde), enabling research visits to Ghent University within our group: https://analysis-pde.org/2022/04/07/imu-simons-african-fellowship-award-2/
In Ghana, our centre has developed lasting connections with the University of Ghana and the University of Cape Coast. Members of our group have visited both institutions multiple times, delivering advanced lectures and supporting MSc-level training.
Through a Carnegie Corporation of New York (CCNY) grant, Linda Botchway began her PhD at the University of Ghana in 2020. She had previously completed her MSc at AIMS Ghana under supervision linked to our centre, and her PhD work has been supervised within our research network:
After a delay due to maternity leave, her PhD thesis has now been submitted, and the defence is expected to take place soon.
Our collaboration with the University of Addis Ababa has also included PhD supervision and mentoring, sometimes outside formal joint PhD agreements. One such collaboration involved Atile Nega, whose PhD thesis was ready for submission when the COVID-19 pandemic began. Tragically, he passed away shortly before his public defence could be held online.
Many of the students mentioned above were supervised without formal joint-degree frameworks. These activities represent a sustained investment of time and effort by our centre, driven by the recognition that many exceptionally talented students in developing countries face structural barriers to adequate supervision. In several instances, students travelled for days to attend advanced mathematics lectures delivered by members of our group.
In addition to research supervision and teaching, Prof Michael Ruzhansky, for several years, served on the jury of the IBNI Prize for Africa, together with colleagues from France, contributing to the recognition of outstanding mathematical research on the African continent:
https://www.idpoisson.fr/prix-ibni/
Overall, these activities demonstrate our centre’s long-standing commitment to fostering mathematical excellence, international collaboration, and equitable access to advanced mathematical training in Africa.
Ghent Analysis & PDE Center 