New advances in the immunology of the “BIG FOUR” (COVID-19, HIV, TB and Malaria) infectious diseases in sub-Saharan Africa.

Dates: 5 – 9 December 2022
Location: M’kango Golf View Hotel, Lusaka, Zambia

Introduction:

The International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS) and Immunopaedia in collaboration with national immunological societies regularly hold immunology training workshops aimed at training early career investigators on a variety of immunology related topics.

In December 2022, the course called “Immuno-Zambia” was held at M’kango Golf View Hotel in Lusaka, Zambia from 5 – 9 December 2022. It was organized by a recently established, Immunological Society of Zambia (ISZ), with funding support from: IUIS, IUIS Education Committee, BioNTech, the Clinical Immunology Committee (CIC), the Federation of African Immunological Societies (FAIS), IAVI and Sub-Sahara African Network for TB/HIV Research Excellence (SANTHE).

The theme of the work shop was “New advances in the immunology of the “BIG FOUR” (COVID-19, HIV, TB and Malaria) infectious diseases in sub-Saharan Africa”. The focus was on advanced immunology of these four prominent infections in sub-Saharan Africa with sessions on immunology of neglected tropical diseases and immunology of infants. Notable at this workshop was a session on Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in academia. EDI principles in Africa like some other parts of the world remain relatively underdeveloped with limited discussion among stakeholders; however, the principles are increasingly recognized as critical to achieve greater scientific productivity and impact. A highlight of the course was a grant writing exercise that allowed the trainees to work in groups to identify important and relevant immunology research question and develop a grant proposals.

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