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 Executive Director’s Note
Focus on EDCTP grantees
Meetings and visits
Events
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| Executive Director's note | ||||||
Reflecting on the year, the last quarter of 2007 was no different at EDCTP; it was a very busy and rewarding year. In the last quarter as is reported in the current newsletter there were many events, the highlights among them the closure of 8 calls and the launch of three new ones. It is very heartening and encouraging to note that in the recently closed calls many of the applicants who were principal investigators were scientists from sub-Saharan Africa. This underpins the equal participation and ownership of the Partnership. The newsletter also features successful stories of our grantees, workshops, meetings, site visits and of course the recently held Fourth EDCTP Annual Forum that was held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The Forum is rapidly becoming one the most important meetings for diseases of poverty in Africa. It is certainly a very vital platform for networking, exchanging ideas, gathering and disseminating information on EDCTP activities. It is therefore fitting that the forum and the HIV calls released on the World AIDS Day week were among the highlights of EDCTP events as we come to the end of the year. |
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| News about calls and grants | ||||||
Calls open for application In the effort to combat the HIV/AIDS pandemic, EDCTP isannouncing funding opportunities for HIV/AIDS researchers.In December 2007, three calls for proposals on HIV/AIDStreatment were launched. Please find below an overview ofall calls that are currently open for application.HIV TreatmentCall for the support of clinical trials, capacity building and networking for HIV/AIDS treatment in sub-Saharan AfricaThe objectives of this call are:
Available funds: A minimum of € 6,500,000 HIV Microbicides HIV Vaccines Funded projects EDCTP is pleased to announce funding of the following projects:  |
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TB treatment stakeholder meeting and the brokering process In preparation for the launch of EDCTP’s call for proposals for tuberculosis (TB) treatment, EDCTP held a stakeholder meeting on TB treatment in Dublin, Ireland. The meeting recommended to focus on shortening and simplifying the treatment of drug sensitive TB. Following this a call for expression of interest was launched on 1 August 2007, with a deadline of 17 September 2007. The applications received in response to this TB Treatment brokering call were considered by EDCTP’s Partnership Board (scientific board). Of the eight eligible applications received, it was recommended that five successful applicants (consortia working on TB trials for shortening or simplifying treatment) should be invited to participate in the EDCTP TB Treatment brokering meeting and that the remaining three should be excluded. This TB Treatment brokering meeting took place in The Hague on 4 December 2007.  |
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| Focus on EDCTP grantees | ||||||
Regional training on HIV viral load assay Following the successful completion of a two year EDCTP Senior Fellowship awarded in 2004 to Dr Abraham Alabi of the Viral Diseases Programme, a further one year extension of the fellowship was approved earlier this year. A major thrust of this one year extension is capacity building and multicentre evaluation of a colorimetric HIV viral load assay developed by Dr Alabi and his team. To this end, some members of the team, Dr Alabi, Mr Pa Saidou Chaw and Modou Camara organised a one week training (24-28 September) on the assay for scientists from Central, Eastern and Southern Africa. The training offered participants the opportunity of sharing experiences on the different commercial HIV-1 viral load assays being used at their centres. There were hands-on sessions during which participants were put through the entire process of viral load assay, which includes HIV RNA extraction from patients’ plasma, reverse transcription and amplification of the RNA and detection of the target DNA product by enzyme oligonucleotide assay (ELONA).The training was hosted by the HIV Laboratory, Centre for Virus Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) in Nairobi. Although more than 50 scientists applied for the course, it was possible to take nine participants only. These were from Ethiopia, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Kenya.
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Financial training course for EDCTP grantees A two week financial training course was held between 3 and 14 December. The course was attended by 16 invited participants directly involved in producing budgets and annual reports on EDCTP grants from 12 different sub-Saharan countries. The course was designed and taught by Deloitte at their offices based in the Gambia and focused on:
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| Meetings and visits | ||||||
Visit of the European Union Commissioner to EDCTP Africa Office On 30 November 2007, the European Union Commissioner responsible for Science and Research, Janez Potočnik, paid a visit to EDCTP Africa Office (AO) in Cape Town. He was accompanied by Mr Ludewing Briet (EU Ambassador in South Africa), Ms Kristina Bole (Member of Commissioner’s Cabinet), Ms Fadila Boughanemi (DG Research International Cooperation Programme) and Mr Daan du Toit (Senior Science and Technology Representative South African Mission to the European Union). The Commissioner was received by the EDCTP High Representative, Dr Pascoal Mocumbi, the President of the Medical Research Council of South Africa, Professor Anthony MBewu and EDCTP’s Africa Office staff. During the visit, Commissioner Potočnik was updated on the activities of the Africa Office and had a guided tour of the facilities. He applauded EDCTP for its good performance and the very important role of the Africa Office in pushing the agenda of EDCTP in Africa. He added that EDCTP has a great potential to do more and that the EC will continue to support it.
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Site visits to Ethiopia and Gabon From 17-21 September 2007, EDCTP visited some of the EDCTP-supported institutions in Ethiopia. The EDCTP team consisted of Mr Simon Belcher (Director of Finance and Administration) and Dr Michael Makanga (Capacity Development Manager). The team had meetings with the scientists and management of various institutions.
The site visits in Gabon took place between 8 and 12 October 2007. The sites visited include the Medical Research Unit, Albert Schweitzer Hospital (MRU-ASH), Lambaréné and The University of Health Sciences in Libreville.
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| Events | ||||||
Fourth Annual Forum: EDCTP looks to the future EDCTP held this year’s annual forum from 22 to 24 October in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. At the forum, stakeholders involved in EDCTP-funded research discussed their work. The Forum’s theme, ‘Building Bridges for Better Health’, gained meaning when Charles Mgone, EDCTP’s Executive Director, said that the partnership between Europe and Africa in fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis is “now a reality”. Scientists from both Europe and sub-Saharan Africa presented an overview of ongoing clinical trials on the 3 poverty-related diseases of HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in Africa. They also identified future priorities, particularly with respect to the promotion of networking activities. Highlights of the scientific sessions included the presentation of the data that led to the tentative approval by the FDA of Triomune (a fixed-dose anti-HIV drug specifically formulated for paediatric use), and the presentation of unpublished data concerning prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS through a combination of tenofovir and emtricitabine. With so many of EDCTP’s stakeholder present, the Executive Director Charles Mgone shared his dream of a genuine partnership between Europe and Africa. Integration of European national research programmes into HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in partnership with African programmes is the key to the EDCTP programme. This kind of partnership requires planning and coordination, as well as mutual understanding and respect. He concluded by saying “Let us decide and plan for the future with our HEADS, but commit ourselves to our decisions and the Partnership with our HEARTS.” The forum was officially opened by the Minister of Social Affairs in Burkina Faso, Honourable Pascaline Tamini, and was hosted by the Centre de Recherche et de Formation sur le Paludisme (CNRFP). It was attended by around 180 participants, which included researchers from both Europe and Africa, EDCTP grantees, policy makers, representatives from research funding organisations and members of EDCTP constituencies. EDCTP’s Fourth Annual Forum Report is currently in production and will be available soon both in print and on EDCTP’s website www.edctp.org.
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