"Student of the Year 2024" comes from Aachen

This year, Contimi Kenfack Mouafo is being honored by Deutsches Studierendenwerk (DSW) and Deutscher Hochschulverband (DHV) as "Student of the Year" for his exemplary volunteer work with the "3 E's 4 Africa" association.

Berlin/Bonn, 1 February 2024. This year's award winner comes from Cameroon and is studying electrical engineering at RWTH Aachen University, specializing in energy technology. In 2020, he founded the "3 E's 4 Africa" association, of which he has been the Chairman of the Board and thus the driving force ever since. The three "E's" in the association's name stand for its statutory purpose: Education, Empowerment and Ecofriendliness. With this objective, students in Germany support fellow students in Africa who carry out local education and research projects on the topics of energy transition, combating climate change and climate change adaptation. The association, which mainly consists of international students and alumni, aims to empower African students and doctoral candidates to develop innovative and sustainable solutions for their continent through their own research, thereby making an important contribution to overcoming global challenges.

"3 E's 4 Africa" promotes and supports projects that are developed, proposed and largely independently implemented by students and doctoral candidates in Africa. The association offers them a platform on which they can present their ideas, establishes networks in which professors and other experts are available as mentors, and provides funding for the projects. Since its foundation, "3 E's 4 Africa" has invested over 100,000 euros in the promotion of innovative, sustainable ideas of young African students and doctoral candidates and has supported over 200 people in Cameroon, Ghana, Namibia and other African countries.

"Contimi Kenfack Mouafo's commitment to civil society stands for active solidarity and cooperation on an equal footing. It encourages African students to develop their continent in a self-determined and sustainable way, inspires other international students to become socially involved at German universities and thus contributes to their integration into student life in this country," said DSW President Professor Dr. Beate Schücking and DHV President Professor Dr. Dr. h.c. Lambert T. Koch jointly explained the award.

The DHV and DSW have awarded the "Student of the Year" prize for the ninth time. The award recognizes students who demonstrate outstanding commitment that goes beyond their academic achievements and should be as unique and innovative as possible. In the unanimous opinion of the six-member DHV/DSW jury, Contimi Kenfack Mouafo fulfills these criteria with his exceptional and exemplary commitment in every respect.

The "Student of the Year" will be officially awarded on 25 March 2024 in Berlin at "Gala der Deutschen Wissenschaft" of Deutscher Hochschulverband. The award comes with prize money of 5,000 euros, which is donated by the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft.

The DHV/DSW-Jury:

Dr. Yvonne Dorf, Geschäftsführerin des DHV

Dr. Matthias Jaroch, DHV-Pressesprecher

Professorin Dr. Daniela Wawra, Universität Passau

Matthias Anbuhl, DSW-Vorstandsvorsitzender

Lukas Peschke, Kiel, Sprecher des DSW-Studierendenrats

Paul Rouven Kiel, Göttingen, Sprecher des DSW-Studierendenrats