First female university student in Ethiopia wins L’Oréal-Unesco prize

The first woman to attend university in Ethiopia and the first female dean of a medical school in New York city are among the five winners of this year’s L’Oréal-Unesco awards for women in science.

Now in their 16th year, the awards are given to one woman from each of five regions of the globe. They recognise advances in areas such as cancer, depression and addiction.

Plant pathologist Segenet Kelemu is the winner from Africa and the Arab states. According to a Unesco statement, she was the first woman to attend Addis Ababa University, which was Ethiopia’s only university at the time, and is being recognised for her work on symbiosis between microorganisms and grasses.