Over the next three years, four projects in the areas of cancer, paediatrics and the relationship between tuberculosis and diabetes will be supported under the “We Forward – Capacity Building in Health Sciences in PALOP” initiative, a partnership between the Gulbenkian Foundation and the “la Caixa” Foundation.
The projects were selected by an international jury, among 20 applications, in areas of health sciences considered fundamental in Angola, Guinea-Bissau and Mozambique. The support of around 100 thousand euros, per project over three years, aims to contribute to strengthening the capacities of research centres or hubs of higher education institutions and their links to health units, to contribute to resolving health challenges in these countries.
In Angola, the Katyavala Bwila University project “Capacity Building for Research, Prevention and Treatment of Oncological Diseases in Albinos” will be supported, which also has as partners the Lubango Central Hospital, the Portuguese Oncology Institute of Porto and the GONCOinitiative. Led by researcher Maria Madalena Paulo Chimpolo, the project emerged as a response to the high number of people with albinism in the provinces of Huíla and Benguela – regions marked by high levels of sun exposure, social vulnerabilities and a high incidence of oncological diseases. The objective is to create a solid and integrated infrastructure for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of oncological diseases in albinos, as well as to evaluate molecular and clinical biomarkers, characterize the tumour microenvironment of skin lesions and create a molecular clinical-pathological model that contributes to a better prognosis.
The “Oncology Initiative” project, promoted by the Jean Piaget University of Bissau, aims to create a research ecosystem, integrating teaching, research and care provision. Led by researcher Bubacar Embaló, the project aims to strengthen Guinea-Bissau’s response capacity to the oncological challenges it faces, improving infrastructure and training specialized professionals to increase the rate of early diagnosis and treatment options. The country presents, among other challenges, a low rate of early diagnosis of cancer and limited treatment options, due to the lack of adequate infrastructure and specialized professionals.
Still in Guinea-Bissau, the Lusófona University will receive support for the project, led by Baltazar Cá, which aims to understand the relationship between tuberculosis and diabetes mellitus, one of the chronic non-communicable diseases that are emerging as a growing problem in Sub-Saharan Africa, coexisting with high rates of infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis. This project proposes to carry out a prospective study in two groups of patients previously characterized as latent tuberculosis infection and diabetes mellitus, to decipher the bidirectional relationship between the two conditions, evaluate the impact of diabetes on the development and progression of tuberculosis, as well as the effect of tuberculosis on glycemic control.
In Mozambique, the project of the Faculty of Medicine of Eduardo Mondlane University aims to strengthen the capacity of the Pediatric Research Centers that aim to carry out cutting-edge research in the pediatric area, especially in the preparation of clinical trials for new medicines and vaccines, in collaboration with external institutions and funding from the EDCTP. The project, led by José Sumbana, aims to create infrastructure and technology conditions and strengthen human resources at the University’s Microbiology Laboratory. The training will focus on good clinical and laboratory practices, clinical trial management and bioethical issues.
The We Forward initiative was born at the end of 2024, when the Gulbenkian Foundation and the “la Caixa” Foundation signed a collaboration protocol to develop a program that would promote training in the area of health sciences in the PALOP, through the strengthening of research centres or centres of higher education institutions and their connection with health units in these countries. Through the International Area of the “la Caixa” Foundation and the Partnerships with Africa Program of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, the two foundations have been collaborating since 2015 on different initiatives to promote partnerships and strengthen the global health sector in the PALOP countries.
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