Initiative Afrique - Mike Mwanga

Recording date: 09.10.2024 

Moderator: Djouroukoro Diallo. Production: Patricia Teixidor

Music: Intro and outro: "Yadina" (xylophone duet). CD 1. MBUDI MBUDI NA MHANGA-NYMBO ZA WADODO. The Musical Universe of the Wagogo Children from Tanzania ©PoloVallejo. Musical pauses: Giacomo Forte, "Nairobi"; Blue Dot Sessions, "Dirtbike lovers"; Abdoulaye Alhassane Touré, "Tamala". Free Music Archive.

Mike Mwanga arrived in Bern a year ago to pursue a PhD in the Experimental Virology group at the Institute for Infectious Diseases. Originally from Kilifi, Kenya, he was trained as a bioinformatician in his home country and developed a strong fascination for using computational methods to understand genetic data. His biggest challenge in Bern has been overcoming the language barrier. Mike believes his role as an African scientist is to serve as a bridge, fostering connections between his home country and Switzerland, especially within his field of expertise. He is part of the Genomics for Public Health Initiative, one of the Clusters of Research Excellence (CoRE) launched by The Guild and the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA). In 2023, these two organizations jointly launched 20 Africa-Europe CoREs. Mike has proposed that Initiative Afrique could establish exchange programs to allow Swiss students to study at African institutions and vice versa. What he misses most about Kenya is his family and the food.

Members of the Initiative Afrique community at the University of Bern (Switzerland) introduce themselves in a series of podcasts.