Abstract

The Africa Center for Biostatistical Excellence: a proposal for enhancing biostatistics capacity for sub-Saharan Africa

Machekano, R. Young, T. Rusakaniko, S. Musonda, P. Sartorius, B. Todd, J. Fegan, G. Thabane, L. Chikte, U.
Stat Med. 2015; 343481-9

Permanent descriptor

https://doi.org/10.1002/sim.6572

Sub-Saharan Africa has a shortage of well-trained biomedical research methodologists, in particular, biostatisticians. In July 2014, a group of biostatisticians and researchers from the region attended a brainstorming workshop to identify ways in which to reduce the deficit in this critical skill. The workshop recognized that recommendations from previous workshops on building biostatistics capacity in sub-Saharan Africa had not been implemented. The discussions culminated with a proposal to setup an Africa Center for Biostatistical Excellence, a collaborative effort across academic and researcher institutions within the region, as a vehicle for promoting biostatistics capacity building through specialized academic masters programs as well as regular workshops targeting researchers.