The EU-Africa PerMed project consortium was launched on 4 March 2021 (https://www.euafrica-permed.eu/). This initiative is funded under Horizon 2020, the European framework programme for Research & Innovation.
The EU-Africa PerMed project aims to integrate African countries into the International Consortium for Personalized Medicine (ICPerMed) (https://www.icpermed.eu/), as a means to contribute to a successful implementation of Personalized Medicine (PM) in the global context, fostering joint PM projects and programmes between Europe and Africa, as well as strengthening bilateral science, technology and innovation relations in the area of health.
The ICPerMed, initiated in 2016, provides a platform to support research in personalised medicine. It is formed by more than 40 funding bodies from EU member states and beyond, including public and private not-for-profit health research funding and policy organisations. The project, conceived and designed in the middle of the coronavirus outbreak, responds to the necessity of global approaches when facing global threats.
The EU-Africa PerMed activities are distributed in 6 Work Packages to identify and engage relevant health-related organisations and to foster the integration of funding structures and policy organisations into ICPerMed. It will also focus on seeking synergies and align with activities of ongoing EU-Africa research programmes and other bi-regional policy actions.
During the next 4 years, EU-Africa PerMed will be developed by 13 organisations from both Europe (6 partners) and Africa (7 partners). The role of the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) is to explore and analyse the potential and advantages of collaboration of Africa and Europe in the field of PM. Identify areas of mutual interest and added value for future collaboration, and build sustainable links between Africa and Europe in PM research, development, innovation and implementation to better integrate the African continent in the global PM agenda. The SAMRC consortium activities are led by Rizwana Mia (program manager in precision medicine), and Fareed Abdullah (Director of the office of AIDS and TB research), as well as Phetole Mahasha (project manager: precision medicine)
The kick-off meeting allowed the participants to virtually share and plan the first steps to be taken for launching the action. The meeting included the Project Officer from the European Commission and the members of the External Advisory Board, comprising 5 renowned experts that highlighted the opportunity this project brings to join forces, build on existing efforts at African level, and foster a dialogue between initiatives. They also underlined the importance of sharing common approaches to PM and demonstrated the added value PM may bring to health issues on the continent.
Virtual kick-off meeting of EU-Africa PerMed project (4th March 2021). More than 30 people, from partner organizations, European Commission and Advisory Board Members attended this first meeting.
For more information, please visit https://www.euafrica-permed.eu/ and follow us on @EU_AfricaPerMed.