Defeating Poverty-Related and Neglected Diseases in Africa: Harnessing Research for Evidence-Informed Policies

Abstract

The biennial Forum has grown in size and recognition to become one of the largest international conferences for the presentation and discussion of frontier clinical research on poverty-related infectious diseases, as well as capacity development including ethics, regulatory and training initiatives in sub-Saharan Africa. With the support of the European Union, EDCTP member countries and other sponsors, the conference offers scholarships to many early and midcareer researchers especially from sub-Saharan Africa to present results of their studies and meet colleagues from Africa, Europe and beyond. Moreover, the conference provided opportunities for new collaborations with other actors in the field of global health, such as research institutes, international private and public funders, development agencies, product development partnerships and pharmaceutical and biomedical companies. The conference was attended by 434 participants from 48 countries, with scholarships for 120 early career scientists. The theme of the Eighth Forum was: 'Defeating poverty-related and neglected diseases in Africa: harnessing research for evidence-informed policies' This reflects two specific aspects of the second EDCTP programme (EDCTP2, 2104-2024). The reference to neglected infectious diseases points to the broadening of the scope of the programme. In addition to HIV, tuberculosis and malaria, the scope of EDCTP includes now most neglected infectious diseases, diarrhoeal diseases, lower respiratory tract infections, and emerging or re-emerging infectious diseases of relevance to sub-Saharan Africa. Secondly, the theme refers to the importance of making sure that new scientific results find their way into health care policies and practice. The Forum offered a comprehensive scientific programme with keynote addresses by prominent speakers from the North and South, oral presentations in plenary and parallel sessions, panel discussions, a collaborative session, scientific symposia, educational workshops, meet-the-expert sessions and poster presentations. In this Supplement to BMJ Global Health, the abstracts of the plenary presentations, the oral presentations in the various parallel sessions, and poster presentations are published. The abstracts give a work-in-progress impression of the scope and objectives of the EDCTP programme. This Forum was officially opened by His Excellency Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu, the President of the Republic of Zambia, who is a true advocate for health research capacity development in Africa. Several high-ranking government policy makers including ministers, directors from ministries of health, higher