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The new award aims to highlight the importance of activities that extend beyond the borders of the Czech Republic. The Rector may award the prize for education, science and research or for contribution to society.

Doc. PhDr. Jan Záhořík, Ph.D., from the Department of Middle Eastern Studies at the FA is one of the most prominent Africanists in Europe. He specialises in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly Ethiopia. He received the Rector’s Award for his outstanding achievements in science and research.

“Jan Záhořík is an internationally recognised expert on the countries of East Africa. I appreciate that as a member of international scientific teams, he is an excellent representative of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, that he contributes to our knowledge of this specific region and with his science and research activities strives for its positive development,” said Rector Miroslav Holeček who presented the Rector’s Award for Strengthening the Reputation of the University of West Bohemia Abroad to Jan Záhořík on Wednesday, 4 January. The nomination was submitted by the Dean of the Faculty of Arts David Šanc and discussed by the University’s Scientific Council on 13 October 2022.

“Jan Záhořík’s international activities are very comprehensive and include research and publication as well as teaching. He is an excellent example of the principle of internationalisation in action,” added the Vice Dean for Internationalisation, Dita Hommerová.   

Suggestions for who should receive the brand new internationalisation prize can come from any part of the UWB. The prize may be awarded to any UWB employee whose activities significantly contribute to the strengthening of the UWB’s reputation abroad in education, science, research or in the social sphere. Nominations are discussed by the UWB’s Scientific Council; the final decision belongs to the Rector. The prize comes with a financial reward of CZK 50,000.

The trophy made from Carrara marble was designed by Martin Verner, head of the Metal and Jewellery Studio at the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art at the UWB. The object, depicting a stylised globe with a golden UWB logo in the centre, was carved in the RTI research centre.

Jan Záhořík has been working at the UWB since 2008. He successfully completed more than thirty research, lecture and travel stays in Ethiopia, Sudan, Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi and Morocco. He has given lectures at two dozen universities in Europe, the USA and Africa. As a member of an international research team, Jan Záhořík is one of the nine editors and author or co-author of three chapters in last year’s monumental Routledge Handbook of the Horn of Africa, a comprehensive overview of the current state of research on the easternmost part of the continent.