General news.

Bedri, Nafisa Mohamed

A delegate from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs visited the Ahfad University for Women (AUW) in October, 2009. The meeting discussed the different joint programs between the AUW and the Norwegian institutions and means of enhancing this collaboration.

The Ahfad University for Women in collaboration with Trinity College, Dublin, the University of Malawi, the University of Namibia, the Secretariat of the African Decade for Persons with Disabilities, Stellenbosch University, South Africa, and SINTEF, Norway held the Stakeholders Workshop of the collaborative research project on "Enabling Universal and Equitable Health Care for Vulnerable People in Resource Poor Settings in Africa (EQUITABLE)" in October, 2009. The workshop included presentations on the policy analysis conducted by the AUW research team as part of the research project activities. It was attended by participants from the Federal Ministry of Health and other stake holders.

The Ahfad University for Women held a one day workshop on the Progress of MDGs in Sudan in November, in honor of the visit of the new UNFPA Representative and Chief of Mission in Sudan , Mr. Johan de Graaf. The workshop also included a presentation about the long collaboration between the AUW and the UNFPA in different areas of work in reproductive health, population and gender issues.

A delegate from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway has visited the Ahfad University for Women in October, 2009. The delegate included Ms. Guri Eggan from the International Office and Dr. Berit Rostad, an associate professor in the Department of Public Health and General Practice, Faculty of Medicine. The visit's aim was to explore future areas of collaboration between the two institutions in areas of research and curricula development. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the two institutions at the end of the visit which is paving the way for more practical steps for the collaboration.

A lecturer from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) has held a training workshop for the Ahfad University for Women in Learning and Teaching Skills. Mrs. Hazel Howden-Leach, who is an Academic Developer at the LSTM conducted the training in November, 2009 as part of the ongoing collaboration between the two Universities.

A delegate from the USAID Sudan has visited the Ahfad University for Women to learn about the work the AUW is doing in the area of development and humanitarian assistance. The delegate included; Ms. Sue Mcintyre, the Senior Humanitarian Advisor, USAID and Ms. Eunice Wavomba, Program Manager for Darfur, USAID.