The Quantitative Bioscience Institute (QBI) at UCSF and the University of Sierra Leone are organizing the first international scientific meeting in Sierra Leone, West Africa July 29 - August 3, 2024. The First International West Africa Symposium and Workshops on Infectious Diseases will bridge basic and clinical infectious disease research across countries in Africa, North America and the EU. It will create connections to policymakers, patients and other stakeholders in West Africa, and focus on key aspects of Ebola, Lassa, malaria, Dengue, Zika and HIV.

This 2-day Symposium will include presentations from researchers in West Africa, the US, EU and beyond and will be followed by 4 days of hands-on workshops.

Symposium Objectives: July 29 – July 30

The overarching objectives are to share results and facilitate collaborations of West African scientists and clinicians with each other and the global scientific community. We expect early career investigators from Africa will find this meeting especially helpful for networking with senior researchers and those from non-African countries -- direct interactions that might not otherwise be possible and which are highly valuable for future research collaborations.

Workshop Objectives: July 31 – August 3

Following the symposium, we will provide 4 days tactical, hands-on training in key areas (Bioinformatics, Biostatistics, Molecular Biology and Clinical Research) and build capacity via grant writing and scientific writing instruction and introduction to free public resources at the NIH, particularly in bioinformatics. The organizers will provide travel scholarships to selected African trainees and early stage and senior African investigators, with particular emphasis on women and minorities. Decision making will be led by colleagues from African countries who are in tune with current emerging-realities and issues in the region. To apply and learn more about the workshops, please visit: https://sierraleonescience.org/workshops.

Learn more about this event: https://sierraleonescience.org.