Interview with 2019 Mike How Travel Award Winner, Bakani Mark Ncube
By Etashe Okpola
Bakani is a recent graduate of the University of Zimbabwe’s School of Pharmacy. With a special interest in Industrial Pharmacy, specifically pharmaceutical regulatory affairs, Bakani is set to pursue his M.Sc. in Pharmaceutical Science in Cape Town, South Africa. Bakani has also served in various capacities, including the Zimbabwe Pharmaceutical Students Association, International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation, and the Pharmaceutical Society of Zimbabwe (PSZ). He is the recipient of the 2019 Mike How Travel Award.
We’re glad we have you interviewed. Thanks for granting us a few hours of your time, Bakani. Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Thank you for taking time out of your schedule, as well, to interview me. My name is Bakani Mark Ncube. “Bakani” means “to build” in Nambya and Khalanga. As my parents’ first child, they intended to build a life and a family together. So, here I am.
I was born here in Zimbabwe, in the country’s second-largest city, Bulawayo. I love travelling, being outdoors, and photography.
I studied Bachelor of Pharmacy (Honours) offered by the University of Zimbabwe’s School of Pharmacy from 2015–2019. During this time, Pharmaceutics and Pharmacy Practice were always my strong suit, and I particularly took a special interest in Forensic Pharmacy in my third year. Since then, I’ve wanted to pursue a career in Industrial Pharmacy, specifically pharmaceutical regulatory affairs.
I’ve also been fortunate to serve young pharmacists through prestigious pharmaceutical organisations, including the Zimbabwe Pharmaceutical Students Association, International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation, and the Pharmaceutical Society of Zimbabwe (PSZ).
What motivated you to apply for the Mike How Travel Award?
I have known about the Mike How Travel Award for three years now, and when I first heard about it, it was something that I aspired to go for. Not only is it an award to add to a curriculum vitae (CV), but it is also more than that. It is an opportunity to attend the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) Congress which is something every pharmacist should do, at least once. FIP has a proud history dating back to 1912, and it brings together pharmacists who play a critical role in society. I was motivated by the fact that this Congress would provide me with the ideal opportunity for networking, contribution, growth, and a platform to compare practices in the different regulatory/pharmaceutical contexts from which the various professionally and culturally diverse delegates come from. The Congress’ discussions would provide different perspectives on the same topic and challenge my belief system, which undoubtedly gives a head start to enable me to stay ahead in the game and become a true global citizen. And I am pleased to say that the FIP Congress and being a recipient of this Award checked all those boxes.
You must have been elated when you got the news about your win. How did it make you feel?
Well, as with any award, it was very exciting and heartwarming. It was humbling. And a testament to a lot of hard work that has been put in over the years. More importantly, it was not lost on me that by receiving it, it would hopefully motivate and inspire other Zimbabwean pharmacy students to excel and know that it is possible to get such an award on an international level.
I’ll never really know what it is that the selection committee saw in me, but I am truly grateful that they found me worthy.
Receiving this award must have shaped you both personally and professionally. Could you tell us a bit more about its impact on you and those around you?
Personally, it validated to me that work done isn’t done in vain and that patience is a virtue. Everything in its own time will fall into place. And like I mentioned in the last question, I am a firm believer that I should always try! Also, it is important to give back — just in the same way that people who have gone before me have made an effort to connect me to opportunities and mentor me, I too must pay that forward.
Professionally, and I am just reiterating my earlier sentiments, it provided me with numerous opportunities and different perspectives, making me a true global citizen. I also enjoyed speaking professionally about my passion, regulatory harmonization efforts in Africa, and making a presentation at the Industrial Pharmacy Section (IPS) Assembly.
Furthermore, based on the feedback I received, Zimbabwean young pharmacists and pharmacy students have felt more inclined to join FIP and be part of a large organization that advocates for the pharmacy profession. They feel inspired and motivated to partake in socially relevant research, as well as explore other fields of pharmacy that are not the typical community/retail environment.
Could you tell us a bit about some of the recent projects that you have worked on?
Between December 2018 and April 2019, I conducted research titled, “Barriers to Reporting Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) by healthcare Professionals in the Metropolitan Province of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.” This served as an advocacy for pharmacists and the important role they play in pharmacovigilance in our country as the custodians of medicines. At the Congress, I made a presentation on “Access to safe, quality and efficacious medicines in Africa” which highlighted the role that pharmacists play in ensuring such access to medicines, and advocated for regulatory harmonization and policy coherence in Africa, with pharmacists as important stakeholders.
I am starting my M.Sc. Pharmaceutical Science soon in Cape Town, South Africa, which is something that I am excited about. It will be building on the regulatory harmonization initiatives in Africa and policies that exist and those that are being proposed to ensure access to safe, quality, and efficacious medical products/health technologies as part of Agenda 2063 efforts. This is my next project since researching on “Barriers to Reporting Adverse Drug Reactions by Healthcare Professionals in the Metropolitan Province of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.”
Had you not won the Mike How Travel Award, where do you think you’d be right now?
I would be doing exactly what I am doing now. The plan wouldn’t have changed. That is, I still would have gone ahead to apply for M.Sc. Pharmaceutical Science and do research on African regulatory harmonization.
What is your drive, Bakani? What keeps you going through the tough seasons?
To be honest, I haven’t quite fully figured that out yet — my drive — but I do believe that to whom much is given, much is expected and it is not lost on me that I have been given a lot in life, and so I just do… I do what needs to be done as long as it is at the intersection of what I believe and the values that I hold. I believe in equity, in human rights, and in creating a more just world for us and for the generations that are to follow after us.
To keep going through the challenges, it is the wisdom that comes with knowing that although today might be a rough day, this too shall pass. There will be light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not going to be a train coming full speed at you. Life goes on, each sunset is the promise of new and better days to come.
I also want to say this to other young pharmacists: we have a moral obligation to serve, and serve our fellow man we shall. I love this quote by Nelson Mandela that says, “There is no passion to be found playing small — in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”
And so with that, serve in whatever capacity that you can, and all of our combined efforts will be the change that this world so desperately needs.
