Completed Infection & Immunity

Capacity development in malaria research in Africa.

Funder Wellcome Charity-funded
Recipient organisation London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
Funding £7.3M
Period Jul 2008 — Mar 2016

In plain English

AI plain-English summary

Malaria still kills hundreds of thousands of people in Africa each year, yet the continent lacks enough home-grown scientists to lead the fight against it. This programme will train a new generation of African researchers to take charge of malaria research on their own terms. The problem is straightforward: too few African scientists hold PhDs in malaria research, and those who do often struggle to stay in science after graduating. Without senior mentors, competitive funding, and strong university programmes on the continent, talented researchers leave for jobs abroad or abandon research entirely. This project tackles that gap head-on. If it succeeds, the programme will create a self-sustaining network of African-led malaria research. Trained scientists will design and run studies on treatments and prevention that are relevant to local communities, not dictated by outside priorities. The PhD model itself—built on partnerships between African and northern universities, with students spending most of their time in Africa—could be replicated by other universities across the continent. The ultimate change is quieter but deeper: a shift in who decides what malaria research gets done, and who gets to do it.

View original technical description
The key goal of this proposal is to improve malaria research capacity in Africa. This will be achieved by further developing the skills of 35 African scientists previously supported through the Gates Malaria Partnership and by the training of a further 20 African scientists to doctoral level. Support for previously graduated PhD scientists will be provided through a mentoring and small grants programme. A new, highly competitive PhD programme will be established based on universities in Ghan a, Malawi, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda. Successful applicants to this programme will be encouraged to undertake the majority of their research in Africa. Each student will be co-supervised by at least two supervisors, including one from a northern and one from a southern partner in an integrated way. Each student will receive an award of up to 50k for their research and will be encouraged, with guidance, to develop their own personal development programme. Successful graduates will be eligible to apply for a competitive re-entry grant. The output of this programme will be a significant contribution to research on the treatment or prevention of malaria and the establishment of an effective PhD programme that may act as a model for other African universities.

View the original record at the funder ↗

Researchers

Brian Greenwood (EPMC Awardee)

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Original classification

Strategic Award - Science

Plain English summaries and category classifications on this site are generated by AI and may not perfectly reflect the original research.