A Nigerian, Martina Chukwuma-Ezike, has been elected by students as Rector of the University of Aberdeen.
Martina accumulated 242 votes under the transferable vote system. The other two candidates—Blair Imani and Radeen Moncrieffe—finished with 71 and 92 votes, respectively. A total of 405 votes were cast.
She becomes the first woman of colour and the first Nigerian to be elected rector of the university, an ancient position that dates back to the foundation of the university in 1495.
She is also a graduate of the University of Aberdeen, having completed her MBA in 2009, and has a longstanding relationship with the student body, offering mentoring, volunteering, and work placement opportunities at the Asthma and Allergy Foundation, enabling medical students to gain experience by working directly with asthmatics.
Chukwuma-Ezike is chief executive of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation, Scotland’s only dedicated asthma charity, which she founded in 2009. The charity set up the first asthma support center in the UK in order to provide support services for people with asthma and allergies in the northeast of Scotland.
Martina co-developed the Grampian Respiratory Improvement Project for NHSG and is a sitting member of the Grampian Respiratory Improvement Group; she is a member of the Cross-Party Group on Lung Health at the Scottish Parliament and a member of the Association of Chief Officers of Scottish Voluntary Organizations, mentoring and supporting newly appointed Chief Executive Officers.
She is an ardent supporter of women in business and an active mentor of business owners across the UK. She is also a fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts, Manufacturing, and Commerce, a distinction she received based on the tremendous work she did to support the 5.4 million people living with asthma across the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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She is married to Uchenna Chukwuma-Ezike, a chartered chemist and chartered scientist who hails from Anambra State, Nigeria.