Finding the right working culture is pays dividends when trying to juggle academia and parenthood in Africa.
Credit: African Population and Health Research CentreIn the fifth instalment of an eight-part series about African women in science, Elizabeth Kimani-Murage, head of maternal and child well-being at the African Population and Health Research Center in Nairobi, describes the importance of quiet hours to write as an early-career public-health researcher.
When I was admitted to my PhD programme in 2007, my child was 2 years old. My husband said he would help to take care of the baby, and we decided the child would grow up in Kenya. I knew I had to finish my PhD within three years. I negotiated alternating three months in South Africa with two months working remotely from Kenya. It was really hectic. I worked past midnight many nights.
I pass along my mum’s advice to me: nothing good comes along easily. You have to be diligent and work hard. You cannot sit back and expect results. As a young researcher, I learnt to find time to do the work, managing projects and logistics during the day, and finding quiet time to learn the science of writing.