The participating countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and The Democratic Republic of Congo.

The course, which is funded by JICA and implemented by the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, will be held for eight weeks from August 8, 2022 to September 30, 2022 at the Institute.

The course will help biomedical scientists become more knowledgeable and proficient in infectious disease diagnosis. It will also make them familiar with modern laboratory equipment and foster networking across African nations on advanced laboratory administration.

Participants

Participants will learn the most recent advancements in virology, parasitology and bacteriology as well as biosafety and laboratory quality management procedures.

The diagnostic, therapeutic and preventative capabilities of participating countries' medical facilities or laboratories will also be enhanced by the training.

Success

Success stories from previous trainings held for 42 professionals between 2019 and 2021 show that aside from training their colleagues in their respective countries, the knowledge and skills gained through the training enabled previous participants to effectively support their countries’ response against the COVID-19 pandemic especially in the areas of surveillance, ample collection and RNA extraction and testing, among others.

This year’s training will build on this success with the expansion of the participating countries to Gabon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), two Central African countries, and potentially increase the reach to other African countries in the future.