Creation of a chair to intensify scientific collaboration between mathematicians from France and Africa
Launched in September 2023, the CNRS-AIMS Chair in Mathematics, awarded under the “Joint Research Programme” call for projects issued by the CNRS Europe and International Division, is the culmination of years of collaboration between France and Africa. It illustrates the determination of CNRS Mathématiques (Insmi) to perpetuate these relationships, a vision shared with the African Institute for Mathematical Science (AIMS). CNRS Mathématiques and the AIMS centers wish to develop a long-term common framework capable of accompanying and supporting interactions between researchers from both institutions. Funded by the CNRS for a period of 4 years, the project is coordinated by Ludovic Rifford, professor at the Laboratoire Jean-Alexandre Dieudonné1 , Moustapha Fall from the AIMS-Senegal Center and Stéphane Tchuiaga, associate at the AIMS-Cameroon Center.
- 1CNRS/Université Côte d’Azur
The beginnings of mathematical relations between France and Africa
Mathematical collaboration between Africa and France is nothing new. Numerous initiatives have been taken by researchers themselves or by institutions, such as the CIMPA schools. Since the late 90s, the Centre International de Mathématiques Pures et Appliquées (CIMPA) has been organizing schools with its partners, particularly on the African continent. The aim of these schools is to provide an introduction to an active research topic in mathematics, and they are aimed primarily at students and teacher-researchers in the countries where they are held.
On the CNRS side, the first milestones in this collaboration have been laid mainly via two entities: the activities of the Centre International de Rencontres Mathématiques (CIRM) and the AFRIMath international research network (IRN). The former organizes stays with AIMS centers to increase research activity between partner institutions, while the latter, created in 2021, works to support a Franco-African network of research and training collaborations with sub-Saharan African countries. Short stays, conferences and other seminars have been organized between France and the African continent for several years via these channels. In 2021, the CNRS has also launched its first call for projects “Dispositif de Soutien aux Collaborations avec l'Afrique Subsaharienne” (DSCA), for which 8 mathematics projects have been selected. CNRS Mathématiques now wishes to take these actions even further.
It was through CIMPA's activities that Ludovic Rifford, the French project leader, gradually became involved in international collaborations. First as his university's representative on the board of directors, then as director of the institution from 2016 to 2020, he acquired a taste for these actions and took part in two long-term stays abroad, in Berkeley and Santiago de Chile. At the end of his term, he kept one foot in this world by taking up the post of Secretary for Policy at the International Mathematical Union's Commission for Developing Countries. When the CNRS launched its call for projects to develop field activities in Africa, applying was an obvious choice.
Biography of Ludovic Rifford
Ludovic Rifford obtained his doctorate, prepared under the supervision of Francis Clarke, at the Université Lyon 1 in 2000, then became a professor at the Université Côté d'Azur in 2006. Over the course of his career, he has worked on a variety of problems at the interface between analysis, dynamics and geometry. He has made major contributions to two important conjectures in sub-Riemannian geometry (Sard's conjecture) and Hamiltonian dynamics (Mañé's conjecture).
Since taking up his professorship in Nice, where CIMPA is headquartered, Ludovic Rifford has been involved in international cooperation activities in developing countries. He was CIMPA's Executive Director from 2016 to 2020. He is now Secretary for Policy at the International Mathematical Union' s Commission for Developing Countries, and has just secured funding for a CNRS-AIMS Chair in Africa.
A commitment to long-term relations between France and Africa
This chair project is part of CNRS Mathématiques' (Insmi) desire to establish long-term relationships with Africa. In discussions with Jean-Stéphane Dhersin, deputy scientific director in charge of international affairs, the idea emerged of building on existing structures in Africa.
Mathematical research in Africa is notably expressed through the African Institutes of Mathematical Centers (AIMS centers), the first of which was founded in Cape Town in 2003. These five mathematical institutes across Africa enable selected students to be trained to Master's level. Highly competitive, the AIMS centers represent a prestigious network that attracts large numbers of students. These centers have also developed research activities with permanent positions, and already collaborate with France via, among others, stays organized with the Cirm. The AIMS center in Senegal, headed by Moustapha Fall, who is also a member of the Cirm scientific council, was chosen. The CNRS and this AIMS center signed a memorandum of understanding in 2023, to institutionalize structured cooperation between the two countries.
Working closely with Erwan Brugallé, from the Laboratoire de Mathématiques Jean Leray3 and director of the Afrimath network, and Pascal Hubert, director of Cirm, the project's initiators hope to work collectively to promote exchanges between French and African mathematicians over the long term.
- 3CNRS/Nantes Université