1Two Moroccan women scientists appeared on the list of the AD (Alper-Doger) Scientific Index in 2023. It lists scientists and researchers internationally, based on their performance and scientific efforts. Rajaâ Cherkaoui El Moursli and Farida El Fassi, professors at Mohammed V University in Rabat, managed to appear on the AD index list for their great contributions to scientific research.
2El Moursli was born in Salé in 1954. As a student, she was fascinated and inspired by the American astronaut Neil Armstrong who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. After getting her Bac in mathematics in Rabat, she went to study in Grenoble in France where she obtained her doctorate in physics. In 1982, she returned to Morocco and joined Mohammed V University as a teacher and researcher in nuclear physics, medical physics and high energy physics. From 2013 to 2017, she was the vice president of the university. In 2015, El Moursli received a UNESCO award for “Women in Science” for her key contribution to one of the discoveries in physics. In 2019, she was elected vice president of the Network of African Science Academies (NASAC), which aims to make science as a way for positive change in Africa.
3El Moursli was happy with her position among international scientists. It is an achievement, which awards a long journey of research, work and innovation. She considered her ranking an honor for Morocco and the efforts of researchers and their competencies. “It is a kind of scientific diplomacy that ensures the popularity of Morocco in international academic forums,” she explains.
4Farida El Fassi, a professor of nuclear physics at Mohammed V University in Rabat, ranked second in the Arab world and in Africa on the AD Index. When she was a child, she had a strong passion for sciences. “When I was little, my parents nurtured my curiosity and problem-solving skills through practicing home tasks such as cooking, doing household chores and planning trips,” she explains. El Fassi was born in Larache where she attended middle and high school before moving to Tetouan to complete her university studies. After that, she joined the University of Valencia in Spain and got a doctorate in particle physics there. She then worked as a researcher at the National Center for Scientific Research in Spain. In 2014, she returned to Morocco with the aim of spreading scientific knowledge among Moroccan students.
5El Fassi believes that scientific research “requires individual effort as well as the support of the state. Therefore, Morocco needs to make more efforts to provide more research opportunities and suitable working conditions to minimize brain drain.”
Adapted from: www.pledgetimes.com and www.twas.org
