Nigerian female scholar, Professor Rose-Margaret Ekeng-Itua, has become the first black woman to earn a doctorate degree (Ph.D) in Cybernetics in the world.
Cybernetics is the scientific study of how information is
communicated in machines and pieces of electronic equipment in comparison with
how information is communicated in the brain and nervous system.
Ekeng-Itua is a pioneer educator, administrator and engineer
championing leading roles in Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
(STEM) challenges in Africa, and paving the way for the African youth,
especially girls.
She earned the premiering degree from the University of
Reading in the United Kingdom under the supervision of her first Ph.D
supervisor Prof. Kevin Warwick and the first human Cyborg in the world.
Rose-Margaret Ekeng-Itua is a multi-award-winning professor
of engineering with over 20 years of experience in Engineering and STEM
Education cutting across the USA, Europe and Africa, leading the creation of
innovative programmes in STEM, whose fascination with technology took root in
her childhood in Nigeria.
Surrounded by a culture that often-discouraged girls from
pursuing scientific fields, she found her passion in understanding how things
worked and the potential for innovation.
Her thirst for knowledge led her to pursue a bachelor’s
degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering, followed by a master’s degree
in Mobile and Satellite Communications Engineering in the United Kingdom.
Driven by ambition and a relentless desire to break
boundaries, she went on to make history by earning her doctorate in
Cybernetics.
Despite facing extra-layered challenges as a woman of color
in a male-dominated field, gender biases and a lack of readily available role
models, she refused to let these obstacles define her.
Speaking about challenges encountered in achieving success
in a recent interview, Ekeng-Itua said, “Every challenge became fuel for my
determination. I realised that my success would not only open doors for myself
but would serve as an example for other women and girls who might otherwise
doubt their capabilities.”
“I am a Dreamer-Doer-Thinker, so I always had dreams, but my
dreams were not necessarily focused on being ‘great’, but more on how I could
be a positive change agent, and how to create initiatives, programs and
technologies that will impact the world positively. I am human-centric in my
approach to making positive change hence, the field of Cybernetics gave me that
opportunity as Cybernetics is centered on purposeful design of technologies for
society and humans.
“This has always been my passion, and pursuing my passion
and the dream to disrupt some societal misnomers propelled me to being the
first black woman to earn a doctorate degree in Cybernetics. Being the first in
anything is always retrospective, for me, the initial focus is always creating
positively transformative impact.”
The female scholar further said her passion for Mathematics
and Physics at an early age informed her choice of career.
“I wanted to pursue a career that would give me the
opportunity for creativity, innovation, collaboration, and positive impact in
communities”, she added.
“It was also born from my wish at the age of nine to create
platforms that connected the world to foster global unity for progress and
appreciative understanding of global cultures. At that young age, I noticed a
huge disconnect in what the Global North thought they knew about Africa which I
call the Global South.”
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