The Centre for West African Studies, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (CWAS-UESTC) extends its warmest congratulations to our joint research team with University College London (UCL), which has claimed the Runner-up Prize of the MSEM Advancement Pr ize at the 20th International Conference on Management Science and Engineering Management.

Hosted in Manchester, the United Kingdom from July 27 to 29, 2026, the conference gathers scholars, researchers and practitioners worldwide to exchange cutting-edge research and explore frontiers in management science and engineering management.

The award-winning paper, Humanizing Drug Control Policy: An Emergentist AHP-ANP DEMATEL Framework for Participatory and Relationist Decision-Making, is co-authored by Xianle Chen, Radi Haloub and Tamimu Mohammed Gadafi. Recognized for its original perspective, rigorous academic design and practical policy value, the research integrates AHP, ANP and DEMATEL methodologies to build a human-centred participatory decision-making framework for drug control governance. It offers actionable solutions to complex public policy challenges by fully incorporating voices from diverse stakeholders.

As the first author, Xianle Chen travelled to Manchester to deliver an oral presentation of the research and received the official trophy and certificate on behalf of all co-authors at the award ceremony. Tamimu Mohammed Gadafi, the corresponding author and a young scholar of CWAS, made the core intellectual contributions to the project. He led the overall research blueprint, theoretical construction, multi-model integration and full-text revision, laying the solid academic foundation for the paper’s international recognition.

 This prestigious international honour fully demonstrates CWAS-UESTC’s robust interdisciplinary research capacity and strengths in cross-border collaborative public policy studies. The Centre congratulates all team members on this outstanding achievement. Their influential, socially responsive research sets an inspiring example for all young researchers at CWAS to pursue high-quality scholarship with global impact.

Contributor: Centre for West African Studies, UESTC

Edited by Tamimu Mohamm ed Gadafi&Xu Qianwen