[size=14pt]From the Lab to World Stage, Future Awards 2010 Young Person of the Year, Ify Aniebo is making a real impact[/size]
Posted on Monday, June 21st, 2010 at 12:02 AM
By Wana Udobang

The 2010 edition of the Future Awards was the best yet. At the awards ceremony, it was a double whammy for Ifeyinwa Aniebo, the young malaria researcher bagged awards for Scientist of the Year and the most prestigious of the awards, Young Person of the Year.

Less ‘popular’ than most of the other nominees (Her co-nominees for Young Person of the Year included superstars Asa and Cobhams), Ify Aniebo’s resume reads quite differently from one typically expected of a Future award winner.



She has a first degree in Medical Genetics from Queen Mary’s University, An MSc in Applied Biomolecular Technology from Nottingham University and went on to receive a scholarship from the Prince’s Trust. She is currently a PhD student at Oxford University on a fully funded scholarship from the Wellcome Trust, the Tropical Network Fund and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She has carried out research at the Wellcome-Oxford-WHO unit in Thailand. Passionate about finding a cure to Malaria, this has been her main area of research, her goal is to discover a vaccine to the biggest killer disease in sub-Saharan Africa. Her passion for healthcare goes beyond the world of academia, she hopes to start her own health care magazine in the future with as much glamour as any fashion magazine out on the market.

BellaNaija.com caught up with Ify to find out a bit more about her and her desire to bring the sizzle from the laboratory to the world stage.

Did you think you stood a chance to win the Young Person of the Year award, Also what was going through your head when your name was called?

Honestly I did not think so. When I saw the other names in that category including Asa, Cobhams, Toyosi Akerele and Tolu Ogunlesi, I thought, never in a million years would I stand a chance because all of them are immensely talented and inspiring people. When my name was called I wasn’t even expecting it. I was busy reading the certificate I was given for the Young Scientist of the Year award and was really waiting to cheer someone else on. I was absolutely gobsmacked when I heard my name. I couldn’t believe it. It was a wonderful moment I tell you. l was so happy and was in tears.



Do you think receiving two future awards will have any significance to your career?

Yes. Science is a very tough field to be in and often people need motivation or else a career change will ensue. I get motivated by a myriad of things but receiving two awards to me means I have the full support of a lot of people which I find motivating and encouraging. Winning those awards has given me the strength to continue in my path. The strength also comes from the fact that so many people have been inspired from this experience. I get a lot of messages on facebook from people telling me how inspired they feel and how they want to do something great for the country. I also received a few saying they want to get back into the field of science. I love to inspire people in every way and that to me is the most significant thing in my career.

http://www.bellanaija.com/2010/06/21/from-the-lab-to-world-stage-future-awards-2010-young-person-of-the-year-ify-aniebo-is-making-a-real-impact/

The only thing I saw in that story is the beautiful face of the young lady. Sincerely, there is nothing special about finding a cure for malaria, not in this generation where there are various brands of malaria drugs, sometimes people even get confused of which brand to purchase or prescribe. She only practised an act which I call- Plagiarism.
Lots of scientist in Nigeria have gone as far introducing some alternative treatment to diseases like cancer, HIV (Type I & II).

^^ Blind and desperate.

Congrats to Ify.
weldone.

she's mine