The EU–ECOWAS Scholarship Programme is gaining major recognition as new research from its first scholar cohort drives meaningful progress in energy research West Africa and sustainable development. With overwhelming interest — 10,442 applications across 11 ECOWAS states — the programme selected 72 exceptional scholars, over 40% women, to pursue fully funded master’s degrees in sustainable energy.
A Growing Hub for Renewable Energy Initiatives in Africa
Launched in 2022 by the European Union in partnership with ECOWAS and delivered by the British Council, the programme is accelerating skills development in sustainable energy across West Africa. Scholars are placed in nine leading universities across Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and Togo.
Every scholar in the first cohort completed research focused on real energy challenges — from electric mobility and air-quality monitoring to solar optimisation and energy-efficiency systems. Their work reflects the programme’s purpose: to strengthen human capital for the region’s power sector and expand renewable energy initiatives in Africa.
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1. Blessing Nneka Ben-Festus (Nigeria)
Research: IoT-Enabled Predictive Maintenance and Energy Optimisation for Modern Inverter Systems
Institution: University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Blessing developed a locally relevant Battery Management System (BMS) using IoT and machine learning. This innovation improves safety and energy performance for Nigeria’s widely used home inverter systems.
Capabilities include:
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Three-sensor platform (voltage, current, temperature)
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Arduino-based remote data system
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ML models with 99% accuracy for battery ageing prediction and 92% accuracy for diagnostics
Impact: Improved household safety, reduced costs, and enhanced confidence in decentralised solar-inverter systems.
2. Ruth Mawunyo Kokovena (Togo)
Research: Low-Cost Environmental Monitoring System for Renewable-Energy Planning
Institution: University of Lomé, Togo
Ruth built SISEE, an affordable environmental monitoring solution for regions without access to commercial weather stations. It records temperature, humidity, solar irradiation, tide levels, and GPS data using low-cost sensors.
Technical achievements:
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Temperature accuracy of ±0.5°C
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80% correlation in solar-irradiation tracking
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Efficient tidal-variation monitoring
Impact: Strong support for solar planning, coastal-energy forecasting, and climate monitoring.
3. Godwin Josiah Ajisafe (Nigeria)
Research: Determining End-of-Life Threshold for EV Lithium-ion Batteries in Lagos
Institution: University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Godwin produced the first Lagos-specific model predicting electric-vehicle battery degradation using real local data on temperature, humidity, traffic, and charging patterns.
Highlights:
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R² accuracy close to 0.999
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Identifies heat and stop-and-go traffic as major degradation causes
Impact: Helps EV-policy development, fleet management, and battery-recycling strategies across West Africa.
4. Kevin Konan N’guessan (Côte d’Ivoire)
Research: TGIME-ES – Smart Energy-Management and Solar-Integration Solution
Institution: INP-HB, Côte d’Ivoire
Kevin created TGIME-ES, a high-impact system that cuts electricity demand and boosts solar usage in homes, businesses, and industries.
Results over four months:
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22,962 kWh energy saved
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CFA 2,149,745 money saved
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28% reduction in electricity bills
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National modelling shows demand-growth slowdown by 50%
Impact: Strengthens efficiency, reduces grid pressure, and supports clean-energy adoption.
5. Patience Yaa Dzigbordi Quashigah (Ghana)
Research: Machine-Learning Performance Analysis of Low-Cost CO₂ and PM₂.₅ Sensors
Institution: KNUST, Ghana
Patience evaluated USD 100 low-cost air-quality sensors as substitutes for USD 250,000 reference stations. Machine-learning calibration significantly improved accuracy for CO₂, PM₂.₅, PM₁, PM₁₀, temperature, methane and humidity measurements.
Findings:
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Random Forest performed best
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Reliable environmental data after ML calibration
Impact: Enables affordable air-quality monitoring and supports solar-energy forecasting.
Overall Programme Impact
Together, these five projects illustrate how the programme is expanding scholarship programme showcases research in sustainable energy, strengthening the region’s capacity to:
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Advance renewable-energy innovation
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Support energy-policy development
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Improve environmental monitoring
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Boost solar adoption and energy efficiency
The programme is building a generation of skilled experts leading West Africa’s green transition.
Source
This story was first reported by African Media Agency (AMA). Read the full article here.
