The University of Nairobi has been selected among leading global organisation set to receive Ksh2.5 billion funding from the United States Government.
The US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention unveilled a funding programme for 28 organisations globally valued at USD 22 million.
In a statement released on Tuesday, December 7, the CDC revealed that the global grant is aimed at combating antimicrobial resistance and other healthcare threats through the establishment of the Global Action in Healthcare Network (GAIHN) and the Global Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory and Response Network (Global AR Lab & Response Network).
The programmes built by the grant will focus on preventing infections in healthcare, building laboratory capacity and developing new and innovative ways to rapidly detect and respond to antimicrobial resistance and Covid-19 threats.
At UoN, the grant will be implemented under the Monitor and Prevent Antimicrobial Resistance in Kenya (MAP-AMR Kenya) project.
Dr Loice Achieng Ombajo, who heads the Infectious Diseases Unit at the Kenyatta National Hospital, was selected to head the new project.
Other participants in the project include the Kenyatta National Hospital, The Nairobi Hospital, the National Spinal Injury Referral Hospital, the Ministry of Health and Washington State University-Global Health program in Kenya.
The overall goal of the project is to enhance the capacity to detect and respond to the threat of antimicrobial resistance in healthcare facilities in the country as well as identify the risk factors for antimicrobial resistance.
Ombajo noted that it was paramount to set up the project since there were so many threats in the world catapulted by the emergence of Covid-19 pandemic.
“We look forward to implementing this project to equip laboratory and clinical personnel with the necessary resources and skills to identify, control and prevent Candida auris in healthcare settings in Kenya,” she stated.
Other organisations receiving the funding include American Society for Microbiology (ASM), American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), American University of Beirut, Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), Columbia University, Duke University and Family Health International (FHI360) among others.
The institutions received the awards through a competitive selection process based on scientific needs and funds available.
