By Three Ghanaian Ph.D. students, including one female, have been awarded a $35,000 research grant each by the African Development Bank (AfDB). Their research focuses on vaccines, therapies, and diagnostics to combat emerging infectious diseases.
These recipients constitute the initial group of 20 Ph.D. and MPhil students selected to conduct groundbreaking research as part of the Post Covid-19 Skills Development and Productivity Enhancement Project (PSDPEP).
The research grants, a component of the $28 million five-year PSDPEP project, will facilitate innovative research utilizing synthetic peptides, monoclonal antibodies, and natural products.
The primary objective of the project is to contribute to Ghana’s sustainable post-COVID-19 recovery in the health sector, supporting the restoration of livelihoods, income, employment opportunities, and private sector development.
The PSDPEP Project Coordinator, Justice Amnkwah Mensah, officially presented the grants to the first three beneficiaries during a ceremony held in Accra on Friday.
One of the recipients, Josephine Banini, a medical laboratory scientist at the Ashiaman Municipal Hospital and a Ph.D. student at the University of Ghana, is conducting research on the topic:”Exploring Anti-Mycobacterium activity of selected natural plants extracts in Ghana: Identification of active compounds and evaluation of safety.”
Mr Lennox Mac-Ankrah, a lecturer at the University of Health and Allied Sciences, is researching on the topic: “Mutations within and flanking the integrase gene in people living with HIV on Dolutegravir-based antiretroviral therapy.”
The last beneficiary, Mr Saeed Alhassan, a lecturer at the Accra Technical University, is researching on the topic: “Antimicrobial efficacy of medicinal plants and peptides against multi-drug resistant bacteria.”
While presenting the grants, Mr. Mensah, who serves as both the Project Coordinator and the Chief Executive Officer of the Social Investment Fund, the implementing agency for the Project, extended congratulations to the three Ph.D. students. He also encouraged them to leverage this opportunity to make significant contributions towards enhancing Ghana’s health and research infrastructure.
“This is a project with timelines and therefore they should work hard and be determined to complete their programmes within the set timelines – that is 2027.”
Reverend Professor Kwamena Sagoe, Perfect Lead, PSDPEP, Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Ghana, announced that the second call for research grants will end on March 29, 2024.
He said the Project would prioritise women, persons with special needs, and applicants who are already working in institutions, adding that an amount of $450,000 had been designated to the training and research component of the project.
“We encourage young ideas; people with brilliant ideas (to apply). We want to create the platform and help you bring the ideas to support our health delivery system,” Prof. Sagoe said.
Mrs Banini expressed excitement about being selected to pursue the research and encouraged the team to work effectively to generate outcomes that would shape the country’s health system.
“We want to check if the local plants that we have can be an alternative source to treat tuberculosis,” she said.
In June 2022, the Government of Ghana signed a five-year (2022-2027) agreement with the AfDB to implement the PSDPEP. The Project is being funded from a grant facility of $28.5 million from the AfDB.
The Ministry of Finance is the Executing Agency whilst the SIF is the Implementing Agency for the project.
Other implementers of the Project are the Ghana News Agency, the Department of Medical Microbiology, Biotechnology Centre School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Ghana. and the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre.
