EDCTP team visit to research centres in Malawi
From 7 to 11 April 2025, a team from the EDCTP Association visited several key research projects in Malawi. The team, comprising Dr Thomas Nyirenda, Strategic Partnerships & Capacity Development Manager and Head of the Africa Office; Ms Mary Jane Coloma-Egenlink, Grants Finance Officer; and Dr Montserrat Blázquez-Domingo, Senior Project Officer, aimed to assess progress and foster collaboration with local research institutions.
Among the projects visited was the IMPALA project, which is a research and innovative monitoring system designed for paediatrics in low-resource settings. The project seeks to facilitate early interventions and reduce the hospital mortality rate caused by prevalent respiratory diseases among critically ill children in sub-Saharan Africa. The EDCTP team met with the project coordinator, Dr Job Calis, and colleagues at Kamuzu University of Health Sciences (KUHeS) as well as at the Training & Research Unit of Excellence (TRUE) in Zomba. Additionally, the EDCTP team visited the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS) in Blantyre, where part of the IMPALA project has been implemented, and met with the local lead Dr Theresa Mkandawire and her team. At KUHeS, the team engaged with Dr Nyanyiwe Mbeye, an EDCTP Fellow and lead researcher on the Global Evidence, Local Adaptation: Enhancing Evidence-Informed Guideline Recommendations for Newborn and Young Child Health in Three Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (GELA) project.
The EDCTP delegation also met with Dr Don Mathanga and his team to discuss the MPVE-CC project. This case-control study is evaluating the safety and efficacy of the licensed malaria vaccine RTS,S/AS01, a significant effort in combating malaria in the region.
Additionally, the team visited Zomba Central Hospital, where the IMPALA and the PDMC-II projects were implemented. The PDMC-II project investigates a combination therapy of dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine and azithromycin prescribed monthly for the post-discharge management of children suffering from severe anaemia. Professor Kamija Phiri, the project coordinator, provided insights into the challenges and successes observed in this critical area of research.