Dear Members
I wish to extend my deepest respect and appreciation to all the members of SONA for electing me as the next Sectary General of the Society for the next 4 years.
Other members of the newly elected Executive Committee are
1. Assistant Secretary General – Dr Moses Ekong (mbe_flashpoint@yahoo.com)
2. Treasurer – Dr Samuel Adetunji Onasanwo (samphil2002@yahoo.com)
3. Regional Secretaries;
a. Central Africa – Assoc. Prof Gwladys Temkou Ngoupaye (gtngoupaye@gmail.com)
b. East Africa – Dr Ronald Kamoga (kamogaronald2017@gmail.com)
c. North Africa – Assoc. Prof Nadia El Kadmiri (n.elkadmiri@uiz.ac.ma)
d. Southern Africa – Assoc. Prof Ejikeme Felix Mbajiorgu (ejikeme.mbajiorgu@wits.ac.za)
e. West Africa – Dr Robert Biney (rpbiney@hotmail.com)
It is because of the experience of this team and you, my colleagues, friends and mentors in SONA that I am confident that we shall make the most of the authority invested in the office of the Secretary General and the mandate you have given us to lead the Society.
Our top priority for this year includes;
1. to expand the financial base of the Society. To this end we are working closely with Africa Academy of Neurology (AFAN) to actualise the goal of launching the “African Brain Journal” (A publication of SONA and AFAN). We are not starting from the scratch; a lot of work has already been done by the previous EXCO of SONA and AFAN. We shall need the support of all members to make this goal a reality.
2. to secure corporate sponsors for our Webinar Series and advocacy activities in the different regions. We shall be grateful for your suggestions and recommendations on how go about this.
3. organize advocacy symposia in at least two regions where SONA activities and membership is low.
I would like to request you to continue to support SONA activities by paying up your membership dues and use your position to encourage others to register to be members of the Society. All Presidents of affiliated Societies in each region are encouraged to take active part in this drive and liaise with their respective Regional Secretary and SONA Secretariat or Executive Committee members on how they can assist their members to conveniently remit SONA membership dues without exorbitant bank charges.
I would like to encourage all eligible SONA members to apply to participate in all IBRO funded programmes. We will continue to work closely with the IBRO-Africa Regional Committee (IBRO-ARC) to ensure that eligible SONA members maximally benefit from IBRO funded programmes. Please always visit the SONA and IBRO website for information on available funding.
The Executive Committee will need the generous support, cooperation and trust from all SONA members. I am an optimist and full of hope about the future of our organization. Let us work together for a greater SONA that can deliver more and better for its members.
Please don’t hesitate to contact me (sadiqyus@gmail.com) or SONA Secretariat (sona@confco.co.za) or any of the Regional Secretaries for information or assistance.
Thank you,
Prof Sadiq Yusuf
Secretary General, SONA