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IYQ Closing Ceremony

Celebration and Reflection: The Quantum Legacy

The IYQ Closing Ceremony will be held on February 10 & 11, 2026, at the Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra, Ghana. Registration is required, space is limited, and spots will be given on a first come first serve basis. Please fill in the registration form.

Watch the ceremony live from 10:00 am Ghana, UK time. 

Livestreaming

Registrations are closed

High-Level Opening Ceremony, February 10, 2026

09:00  Registration, Welcome & Quantum 100 video

10:00   Welcome Address by Haruna Iddrisu, Minister for Education, Ghana

10:10   Statements:

  • Video Message by the Director-General of UNESCO
  • UN Resident Coordinator, Ghana
  • John Doyle, Past President of the American Physical Society  
  • Minister for Environment, Science, and Technology of Ghana

10:50  Cultural Interlude: Video reading of the IYQ 2025 Poetry Contest winning entry

11:00   Keynote Address: A Century of Quantum Science: Celebrating 100 Years of Discovery, Impact, and the Next Frontier for Humanity

             Speaker: Michele Dougherty, Institute of Physics 

11:25 Sponsor: DPG–Dr. Heike E. Reil

11:30   Group Photograph/Coffee Break

12:00  Launch of the 2025 IYQ Report – UNESCO

              Panel Discussion: From Celebration to Continuity: Consolidating the Gains of IYQ2025 and Advancing the International Day of Quantum Science

              Moderator: Paul Cadden-Zimansky, Bard College

              Panelists:

  • Amal Kasry, UNESCO
  • Francis Oduro, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
  • Claudia Fracchiolla, American Physical Society
  • Yasser Omar, Portuguese Quantum Institute      

12:45.   Cultural Segment:  Quantum Rhythms 

  • Performance by a Ghanaian youth inspired by science

13: 10  Sponsor: QuiC – David Morcuende

13:15   Lunch Break 

14:40   Sponsor: Institute of Physics, Tom Grinyer

14:45   Dialogue: Africa and the Future of Quantum Science and Technology: Leadership, Innovation, and the Road Ahead

              Moderator: Sandro Scandolo, ICTP

              Panelists:

  • Nii Narku Quaynor, University of Cape Coast
  • Ahmed Younes, Alexandria University
  • Yassera Ismail, Stellenbosch University
  • Estelle Inack, Perimeter Institute
  • Thomas Konrad, University of KwaZulu-Natal

15:30   Keynote Address: Unlocking Tomorrow: Quantum Knowledge as a Catalyst for Human Advancement

              Speaker: Heike Riel, German Physical Society

15:55   Sponsor: Open Quantum Institute – Mira Wolf-Bauwens

16:00   Summary of Day 1 Activities and Announcement

             Moderator: Shaofeng Hu, UNESCO Director of the Division of Science Policy and Basic Sciences

16:15  End of Day 1

Download the program

Engagement and Inspiration: Quantum Futures. February 11, 2026

09:00   Recap of Day 1 Activities, Amal Kasry, Chief of Basic Sciences, Research, Innovation and Engineering, UNESCO

09:05  Sponsor: Frontiers – Roli Richa

09:10  Panel Discussion: Exploring the strategic priorities that will define the next decade of quantum science and technology                  

Moderator: Jonathan Bagger, Americal Physical Society

Panelists:

  • Lidia Brito, Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, UNESCO
  • Silvina Ponce Dawson, IUPAP
  • Ahmadou Wague, African Physical Society 
  • Tommaso Calarco, EU Quantum Flagship
  • Dave Alsobrooks, SC Quantum

 09:55   Introduction and  Launch of Global Quantum Initiative 

Presenter: Shaofeng Hu, Director, Division of Science Policy and Basic Sciences, UNESCO

Panel Discussion (45 min): Introduction and Launch of the Global Quantum Initiative

              Moderator: Amal Kasry, Chief of Basic Sciences, Research, Innovation and Engineering

              Panelists: 

  • Mira Wolf-Bauwens, GESDA
  • Kenneth Aidoo, UNU-INRA
  • David Dodoo-Arhin, AAS
  • Ahmed El Sherbini, ASRT, Egypt

10:40   Panel Discussion: Quantum Science for Global Development: Building Talent, Expanding Access, and Shaping the Future of National Competitiveness

              Moderator: Carla Hermann, University of Chile 

              Panelists:

  • Rosario Fazio, ICTP 
  • Prince Osei, AIMS
  • Daniel Moraes, Venturus
  • David Morcuende, QuIC

11:25  Sponsor: American Physical Society – Jonathan Bagger

11:30  Coffee Break 

11:50  Forum lead:  Education, Workforce Force, and Youth

            Topic: Preparing the World for a Quantum Future: Education, Skills and Youth-Led Innovation

            Presentations by:

  • Peter Haynes, Imperial College, London
  • Dorcas Attuabea Addo, University of Education, Winneba
  • Angela Tabiri, AIMS – Ghana

13:20  Closing Remarks: Prof. Osman T. Damba, Secretary-General, Ghana Commission for UNESCO

13:30   Lunch Break

14:30   Cultural Visit

17:00   Departure