Alan Itai Mukuvare
Doctor
Goes by Alan Itai Mukuvare, but soon to be known as Doctor Alan Itai Mukuvare. Following the successful completion of his PhD at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine where his research will be looking at Novel Therapeutics and Drug Resistance of Tropical Infectious Diseases.
Why it’s important to be a part of AYA: Growing up in Zimbabwe, he often witnessed people suffer from easily curable diseases, Itai made the conscious decision to do whatever he could to help underprivileged communities to gain better access to medication and healthcare. With this in mind and with the support of his family and friends, he completed my first degree and graduated with a BSc in Pharmacology from Nottingham Trent University in 2018.
Around 2009 I discovered my own way of contributing to the improvement of journeys like my own during my time volunteering with African Women Org and in 2013 I founded AYA. Some of the most exciting moments so far have been; bringing together our wonderful young people at our African Heritage Weekend residential for the first time, receiving our first grant funding in 2017 and the interest we had from corporates in 2020 in the wake of Black Lives Matter. I know the next few years are going to be an incredible experience.”
But as James Baldwin so eloquently put it:
“the paradox of education is precisely this – that as one begins to become more conscious, one begins to examine the society in which he is being educated.”
Although my BSc had served me well, I realised that there was so much more I didn’t know and needed to know if I were to ever accomplish my goal. This led me to enrolling at The University of Nottingham where I completed my MSc in Drug Discovery and Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2019. It was during this period in time, when I began to truly examine the society in which I was living. I observed the disparities in drug dosages and in the clinical trial representation of Black Africans and African-American populations. The lack of representation in those studies ultimately leads to less efficacious treatments in the underrepresented populations.
It was also during this time when I started seeking for help from those well-versed in my field. This led me to landing a job at Charles River Laboratories where I worked as an Associate Scientist for a year before I was awarded a scholarship by the Medical Research Council for my PhD. As part of the PhD programme, I am required to complete another master’s but this time a Master of Research (MRes) in Global Health: Translational Research and Quantitative Skills at Lancaster University.
Just like my work with @unwomenuk, I am also a STEM Ambassador and I recently joined AYA as a mentor because I’d like to inspire the next generation of African Youth to pursue their goals relentlessly. My work with AYA is important because I am able to demystify the idea that Science is difficult. Ultimately, by giving back to the community and by sharing the knowledge I have acquired over the years, I am able to shape and aid the lives of the next generation of world leaders.
Through the work AYA does I am able to reach more young people and help facilitate their dreams whether in Science or any other field.
