EDCTP Launches Alumni Network

On October 3, 2017 in Johannesburg South Africa, the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) launched an Alumni network whose goal is to foster Excellence and Collaboration in the next generation of researchers.In order to build research capacity in sub-Saharan Africa, EDCTP’s strategy is to support researchers at different stages in their careers. As such, EDCTP through its fellowship programme is welcoming applications to identify researchers that are capable of building and leading research groups in sub-Saharan African institutions that can compete favorably internationally and able to win grants from international funding bodies. EDCTP aspires to magnify the collaborative relationship between the North and South through its fellowship programme.

The EDCTP programme from 2003 to 2015 has supported 541 African researchers including 56 fellows and awarded 400 grants to PhD and Masters students combined.

IDI has been a beneficiary of three EDCTP grants: Senior Fellow, Career Development Fellowships and EDCTP TDR. At the recently concluded EDCTP Alumni Network launch in Johannesburg, IDI was represented by a team of 6 Fellows whom have been beneficiaries of EDCTP grants. These included in the EDCTP 1 Senior Fellow category: Associate Prof. Pauline Byakika-Kibwiika and Dr. Mohammed Lamorde. In the EDCTP 2 Career Development Fellowship: Dr. Agnes Kiragga, Dr. Jane Wanyama and Dr. Christine Sekagya. In the EDCTP 2 TDR category was Dr. Ian Stephen Walimbwa. Other EDCTP grantees from IDI who did not make it to Johannesburg were Prof. Ponsiano Ocama and Dr. William Worodria in the EDCTP 1 Senior Fellowship category. At the launch Fellows were grouped into Working Groups depending on the poverty-related disease they are working on. The goal of the Working Groups is to enable Fellows benefit from peer support and leverage training opportunities. Dr. Pauline Byakika was elected Chair for the Malaria Working Group and Dr. Agnes Kiragga as Secretary for the HIV Working Group.

EDCTP holds biennial Alumni Network meetings, the next week will take place in Portugal in September 2018.