By Lucy Adautin
Professor Rose-Margaret Ekeng-Itua of Nigeria has achieved a groundbreaking milestone, becoming the first black woman worldwide to attain a doctorate degree (Ph.D) in Cybernetics.
Cybernetics, a field focused on the study of information communication in machines and electronic devices, is compared with the communication processes in the human brain and nervous system.
Ekeng-Itua stands as a trailblazing figure in education, administration, and engineering, advocating for prominent positions for women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields across Africa. Her achievements pave the path for African youth, particularly girls, in pursuing careers in STEM.
Her historic achievement was earned at the University of Reading in the UK, under the guidance of her first Ph.D supervisor, Professor Kevin Warwick, renowned as the world’s first human cyborg.
Rose-Margaret boasts a distinguished career spanning over two decades in engineering and STEM education, garnering multiple awards for her contributions.
Her expertise extends across the USA, Europe, and Africa, where she has spearheaded the development of innovative STEM programs. Her fascination with technology traces back to her childhood in Nigeria, where she defied societal norms that often discouraged girls from pursuing scientific fields.
Despite cultural obstacles, her innate curiosity and drive for innovation led her to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering, followed by a master’s degree in Mobile and Satellite Communications Engineering in the United Kingdom.
Driven by ambition and a relentless desire to break boundaries, she went on to make history by earning her doctorate in Cybernetics.
Despite facing extra-layered challenges as a woman of color in a male-dominated field, gender biases and a lack of readily available role models, she refused to let these obstacles define her.
Speaking about challenges encountered in achieving success in a recent interview, Ekeng-Itua said, “Every challenge became fuel for my determination. I realised that my success would not only open doors for myself but would serve as an example for other women and girls who might otherwise doubt their capabilities.”
“I am a Dreamer-Doer-Thinker, so I always had dreams, but my dreams were not necessarily focused on being ‘great’, but more on how I could be a positive change agent, and how to create initiatives, programs and technologies that will impact the world positively. I am human-centric in my approach to making positive change hence, the field of Cybernetics gave me that opportunity as Cybernetics is centered on purposeful design of technologies for society and humans.
“This has always been my passion, and pursuing my passion and the dream to disrupt some societal misnomers propelled me to being the first black woman to earn a doctorate degree in Cybernetics. Being the first in anything is always retrospective, for me, the initial focus is always creating positively transformative impact.”
The female scholar further said her passion for Mathematics and Physics at an early age informed her choice of career.
“I wanted to pursue a career that would give me the opportunity for creativity, innovation, collaboration, and positive impact in communities”, she added.
“It was also born from my wish at the age of nine to create platforms that connected the world to foster global unity for progress and appreciative understanding of global cultures. At that young age, I noticed a huge disconnect in what the Global North thought they knew about Africa which I call the Global South.”
