Students Study Economic Justice In Africa

NEW YORK � Two Fordham University students awarded the International Peace and Development Travel Scholarship will headed to Zimbabwe Jan. 10 to help promote cooperation among the various Catholic agencies there and to research the effects of apartheid-caused debt. Graduate students Sonali Chib and Stephanie Pins, both in Fordham’s International Political Economy Development program, will spend their spring semester interning in Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Southern African Regional Office in Zimbabwe. CRS is the official relief and development agency for the U.S. Catholic Church. During their internship, the students hope to produce two radio documentaries exploring the economic challenges that ordinary families face in Zimbabwe. The programs will air on Fordham’s radio station, WFUV. Chib, a native of India, served in New Delhi with Oxfam, a private international aid organization. Through her work there and her studies at Fordham, Chib has developed a deep interest in issues facing women in developing nations. Pins, a Chicago native, spent six months working on community development projects in Ghana. As part of her studies at Fordham, she has worked with the Trickle Up Program to help write a loan program designed for economic development in Africa. The Graduate Program in International Political Economy and Development combines economics, political science and sociology studies to prepare students for careers in non-profit organizations, banking and government.