African Women in Mathematics Association

Founded in 2012

The African Women in Mathematics Association (AWMA) was founded on 19 July 2013. The impetus for its founding came from a workshop held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso in October 2012. Marie Françoise Ouedraogo had been elected as president of the African Mathematical Union Commission on Women in Mathematics in Africa (AMUCWMA) in 2009. The October 2012 workshop was jointly organised by the AMUCWMA and the International Centre of Pure and Applied Mathematics. At this workshop African women mathematicians proposed the setting up of an association and, at the AMUCWMA workshop held at the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences of South Africa on 19 July 2013, the African Women in Mathematics Association was created. Ouedraogo was elected as president and, initially, the Association had 25 members. By 2018 it had over 300 members from all five regions of Africa.

The purposes of AWMA are:

1. To encourage African women to take up and continue their studies in mathematics and to promote mathematics among women.
   
   
2. To support African women with or desiring careers in research in mathematics or Mathematics related fields.
   
   
3. To provide a meeting place for these women.
   
   
4. To foster international scientific communications among African women within and across fields in mathematics.
   
   
5. To promote equal opportunity and equal treatment of women and men in the African Mathematical community.
   
   
6. To increase access of African women to socio-economic benefits of mathematics.
   
   
7. To increase access of African women to grants.
   
   
8. To provide mentorship of African female students in primary, secondary and tertiary institutions both at the undergraduate and post graduate levels.
   
   
9. To promote participation of AWMA in the development of Africa.
   
   
10. To cooperate with groups and organisations with similar goals.
    
    
11. To promote cooperation and exchange of ideas in mathematics research and teaching of mathematics.
    
    
12. To stimulate communication between women in mathematics in Africa.
    
    
13. To organise research seminars and colloquia in mathematics in Africa.
    
    
14. To promote visits to Africa of eminent women and men in mathematics from other continents and organise inter-departmental visits and exchange visits.
    
    
15. To promote visits to African countries of eminent women and men in mathematics from Africa and African diaspora.
    
    
16. To seek and maintain contacts with other mathematics associations within and outside the Africa, provided that the objectives and purposes of such other associations are consistent with the objectives and purposes of the association.
    
    
17. To produce a research and information publication and any other publications deemed to be of value in the promotion of the above objectives.
    
    
18. To endow prizes and awards in mathematics.
    
    
19. To carry out any, do or transact any act, scheme or enterprise calculated to further the objectives of the Association.

The first General Meeting of the AWMA took place at a joint AMUCWMA / AWMA meeting in Mombassa, Kenya in July 2015.

Visit the society website.

References (show)

1. African Women in Mathematics Association (AWMA). https://www.mathunion.org/cwm/organizations/regional-and-international/african-women-mathematics-association-awma
2. M F Ouedraogo, Significant issues affecting women in mathematics in Africa. http://www.icwm2014.org/20140812e/panelouedraogo

Last Updated November 2019