By Hussaini Garba Mohammed, who was in Heidelberg – Germany
Dr Mrs Racheal Akinbo, a PHD holder in Computer Science from the Federal University of Technology Akure, Nigeria. She was among the selected researcher at the 11th Heidelberg Laureate Forum, Germany. An active Teacher, Mentor, Author and Researcher in Computer Science.
She was among the HLF young researchers that attended the 11th Heidelberg Laureate Forum this year, the HLF event that hosted 200 young researchers and about 25 laureates from different Countries, which took place from September 22 to 27, 2024.
in addition for the opportunity to be privileged to be among the selected Young Researcher at the 11th Heidelberg Laureate Forum- 2024 in Germany, she was also lucky to be shortlisted on a 3 categories: first as a Young Researcher to attend the 11th HLF Forum, second, her research was selected among the best thirty (30) for presentation at the conference and lastly, her intercultural digital art work was also selected for exhibition during the 11th HLF.
In an exclusive interview Dr Mrs Racheal Shade AKINBO explained:
1. Can you please introduce yourself and how you were selected among the young researchers to be at this wonderful event HLF 2024 to us?
My name is Dr Mrs Racheal Shade Akinbo. I defended my PhD in Computer Science a few days ago, at the Federal University of Technology Akure, Nigeria.
I was privileged to be among the selected young researcher at the 11th Heidelberg Laureate Forum 2024 in Germany in three categories: first, as a young researcher for conference attendance, second, my research was selected among the best thirty for presentation at the conference and lastly, my intercultural digital artwork was also selected for exhibition at the 11th HLF. The artwork was designed with the depiction of science, applied computer science and mathematics. I was proud to raise the flag of Nigeria in Germany, to present my intellectual contribution to knowledge and to fill the knowledge gap.
2. What are the benefits of performing research at a younger age? What did you not expect?
The benefits of performing research at a younger age has many advantages, such as the early exposure to the world of research that leads to having more time to find applicable solutions to the gaps: it helps to nurture our passion for exploring different methodologies and techniques in application to our thematic areas of specialization which would make us stand-out researchers at the early stage of life. In addition, it helps the country with young researchers to stand a comparative advantage to world solutions for sustainable goals and development.
What I do not expect that has become the challenge is the lack of funding and availability of equipment, which are great limitations. Without these, it’s practically impossible to explore your research potential and result implementation. The lack of acceptability of research findings also posed a great challenge to the young researchers due to different factors.
3. How many ongoing projects are you working on that will help you to a higher level?
My Professional goals lie in my ability to become a stand-out solution developer and to make a difference in the lives of students, institutions, communities and our nation at large. My projects have been about creating solutions to our community challenges most especially in the medical field. I have done several projects that have brought solutions to our immediate environment. The recent one is the “classification of viral pneumonia disease using machine learning techniques”. This helps to predict the disease promptly and efficiently leveraging on the application of Technology.
4. How many countries have you travelled to carry out your research or attended an international conference in the last 5 years?
I have presented at EuroPython Conference 2024 in Prague, Czech Republic. I have also attended conferences virtually, like the Supercomputing Conference, 2021, and Grace Hopper Women in Computing, 2018 and 2023 respectively.
5. Do you have any tips for those who are now thinking about a career in scientific research?
I am an advocate of Ladies’ representation in sciences. I founded a group called LiSTEM Africa with the vision to educate, inspire and empower young girls to develop their potential to the fullest and be independent women in STEM through training and mentorship.
My tips will be to first believe in yourself and know that you can achieve your best in research but it requires these 3Ds that helped me, Drive, Dedication and Discipline. The main thing is to have the drive, dedicate your time and self-police yourself to achieve your aim.
6. How do you become a Computer Scientist, considering that a lot of students in secondary school don’t like maths as a subject, and what advice do you have for Nigerian students who want to be like you?
I became a Science student because my brother, Mr Sunday Oyeniyi, advised me to give it a try, giving me different reasons to entice me and I fell for it. Since then, the experience has been countless, some with fun while others with full concentration.
I would like to advise students who are willing to study STEM courses that it is possible. There are rules to everything in life and the STEM field is not an exception. If they can follow the principles that guide these courses, they will be fine. These subjects seem difficult but the fact is, there are rules to be followed, for example, mathematics and Physics involve knowing formulas and applying them appropriately. They should be focused, give it all it takes and then, the sky will be the beginning for them.
In all, the Grace of God has brought me this far and I owe it all to God. I wish every student that is looking forward to attaining such feet, success in their endeavours.
Author and Written by:
HUSSAINI GARBA MOHAMMED, FIIM, MCIA, mips, MBA, DoE, Fellow African Investigative Journalism Conference (AIJC-2020), Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue Media Fellow (BETD), Associate Member, Nigeria Union of Journalist (NUJ), PIJ – Fellow-Netherlands