Page 20 - SAMRC Annual Report 2023-24

PARTNERSHIPS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES

BRICS TB Research Network emerging/re-emerging viral pathogens, vector
biology and control and the impact of alcohol use
The Network, established in 2017, is an endeavour
to collaborate with BRICS Ministries of Health and on HIV/AIDS. Phase 2 also encouraged collaboration
scientists to address the problems of TB in BRICS with underrepresented scientists and Historically
countries and to mobilise resources to find local Disadvantaged Institutions (HDIs) in South Africa, and
solutions. scientists in Kenya, Lesotho, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

• One virtual meeting – hosted by South Africa – About 18 joint US-SA projects are being funded in
was held in May 2023. Phase II of the program. The total funding awarded
• An in-person Network meeting – hosted by to these projects during 2023 was US $5,182,402 to
South Africa – was held in Durban in December which the SAMRC contributed R45m during 2023.
2023. The Network meeting was preceded by a In addition, two one-year supplemental awards
one-day TB Symposium and two-day TB Summit.
• The SAMRC hosts the Network’s website were made by Fogarty International Center to
(www.brics-tb.net) and is hosting the Network’s existing D43 grantees in South Africa to support
secretariat until further notice. career enhancement opportunities and enable
underrepresented scientists to build research skills
South Africa-US Programme and experience in biomedical research.
for Collaborative Biomedical BRICS STI COVID-19 Projects
Research In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the BRICS

The US-South Africa Programme for Collaborative STI Framework Programme (http://brics-sti.org/)
Biomedical Research was established through launched a call in July 2020 for multilateral basic,
a Memorandum of Understanding between the applied and innovation research projects to facilitate
SAMRC and the US National Institutes of Health cooperation among the researchers and institutions
(NIH) in 2013. Phase 1 of the joint programme was in the five BRICS countries.
initiated in 2015 and enabled US and South African
scientists to collaborate on biomedical research in The Department of Science and Innovation (DSI)
the fields of tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and HIV-related invited the SAMRC to manage the above call for
co-morbidities, including malignancies. project proposals in South Africa on their behalf.
Phase 2 (2019-2024) expands on the original scientific Of the seven collaborative projects awarded in 2021-
areas of interest to also include sexually transmitted 22 under this programme, the following collaborative
infections, parasitic infections, arboviruses and projects continued in 2023.

Project Title Principal Investigator Institution
Multidisciplinary platform based on artificial intelligence Prof. Kelly Chibale University of
for accelerating drug discovery and repurposing for Cape Town
COVID-19

BRICS-ICT Alliance for Smart Resource Utilization to Prof. Hanlie Smuts University of Pretoria
Combat Global Pandemic Outbreaks

SARS-CoV-2 Network for Genomic Surveillance in Brazil, Prof. Tulio de Oliveira University of KwaZulu-Natal/
Russia, India, China and South Africa Stellenbosch University

18 SAMRC ANNUAL REPOR T 2023-24