Category Archives: Sub-Saharan Africa

Cultural Astronomy Study in Ugandan Refugee Settlements: Feasibility Report

Possible venue for focus group discussions

The “Knowledge Access and Sharing Through Cultural Astronomy” project has concluded its feasibility study on gathering indigenous astronomy knowledge from people at the Bidi Bidi refugee settlement in Uganda. The Space Technology Agency in Uganda has received a grant from the OAD through the annual call for proposals. The grant was approved for its project […]

Astro-STEM Workshops Show Promise of Improvement in Girls’ Enrolment

EMEJA astro STEM workshops in Kenya

In Kenya, although 70.4% of girls (15-19yrs) achieve some sort of primary education, only 4.5% complete secondary education (WB, 2012). Only 3.5% of women (aged 15+) have completed tertiary education (WB, 2015). This is due to various socio-economic challenges such as teenage pregnancies, early marriages, FGM, poverty and lack of mentorship. Rural areas lack outreach, […]

OAD Project Launches Code Learning Program

Codelastro training workshop

The IAU Office of Astronomy for Development is supporting the Planetário – Casa da Ciência de Braga, Portugal to develop a code learning program with the Portuguese School of Mozambique and the Portuguese School of Dili Ruy Cinatti in Timor-Leste. The CODELASTRO project is a code learning program based on microbits and astronomical topics. The […]

Supporting Girls Education in Kenya

Tutor Elizabeth Wanjiriu Kamau, a University of Nairobi Astrophysics graduate, provides mentorship to schoolgirls by talking about her own journey through education and her career path

this article on girls education was published on DARA Big Data. Read the full article. Elimisha Msichana, Elimisha Jamii na Astronomia (EMEJA) started as a mentorship programme to support girls education for school girls in Kenya between 12 to 18 years old. The programme was founded by Kenyan DARA Project student Ann Njeri, who is […]

Final Report of Astronomy to Develop Pre-Algebra Skills

In coordination with its National Curriculum Development Center (NCDC), Global Hands On Universe (GHOU) ran a twelve-week online astronomy course for secondary school physics teachers based in and around Kampala, Uganda. The teachers received online instruction and guidance from professional astronomers and other GHOU-affiliated educators, learning 21st-century astronomy, constructivist pedagogical methods and the skills needed […]