Schooling Africa : computational materials science education and research

Abstract

The African School of Electronic Structure Methods and Applications (ASESMA) [1 – 7] is a series of workshops held every two years in different sub-Saharan countries, designed to foster a collaborative network for research and higher education in Africa. Participants are drawn from across the continent through a competitive process, and the lecturers and mentors are outstanding scientists from across the world including Africa. ASESMA is administered by the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), and the primary sponsor is the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP). The core guiding principle is that computation makes it possible for world-class research to be done with modest investment, and it is an essential part of education for the future. The skills acquired are useful for teaching at the university level and are transferable to other disciplines. The participants are the teachers who will educate future generations of African scientists.