10 African scientists to undergo training on global health
The African Academy of Sciences (AAS) has partnered with the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to strengthen African scientific leadership and advance health and development goals on the continent.
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10 outstanding early career scientists from nine African countries have been awarded four-year fellowships that will build their capacity to conduct cutting-edge research in global health.
The fellowships will be awarded through the African Postdoctoral Training Initiative (APTI) programme, which is implemented by the African Academy of Sciences in partnership with the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
In a release issued by the African Academy of Sciences (AAS) on June 7, it said the APTI programme was established in 2019 to strengthen research capacity in African countries and develop ongoing scientific partnerships.
It said APTI Fellows were trained and supported to become scientific leaders who can advocate for increased research and innovation projects in Africa.
“This is done through four-year postdoctoral fellowships where APTI Fellows join various laboratories of the NIH Institutes or Centers for two years before returning to their home institutions in Africa for another two years of program support.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s support to the postdoctoral fellows includes seed funding for their research upon their return to their home institution,” it said.
The Executive Director at the African Academy of Sciences, Dr Peggy Oti-Boateng, said “Investing in early-career scientists is a vital ingredient in the transformation of Africa into a knowledge-based and technology-led continent. The AAS is committed to facilitating research and innovation exchanges to enhance African research leadership to transform lives in the continent and deliver the “Africa We Want”.”
The release said the third cohort of the APTI Fellows (APTI 3) - five women and five men - will assume their positions in NIH host labs in October 2023.
It said their research activities shall focus on specific global health research priority areas including human immunobiology, microbiome research, drug discovery, genomics, HIV, malaria, maternal, neonatal and child health.
The acting director of the Fogarty International Center and acting associate director for International Research at NIH, Dr Peter Kilmarx, said “This joint effort brings outstanding early-career African researchers to NIH and strengthens our research partnerships and research capacity in Africa over the long run. We’re thrilled to welcome these 10 new exceptional scientists with diverse research interests.”
“The APTI 3 Fellows represent the best research talent on the continent, competitively selected from 296 applicants. The 10 new fellows join two other active cohorts whose details are available on the APTI Programme webpage,” the release added.
About AAS
The African Academy of Sciences (AAS) is a non-aligned, non-political, not-for-profit pan African organisation whose vision is to see transformed lives on the African continent through science.
Its tripartite mandate is recognising excellence, providing advisory and think tank functions, and implementing key STI programmes addressing Africa’s developmental challenges.