Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) – Epicentre Niger Research Centre

In Niger, infectious diseases and child malnutrition are the principle causes of mortality. In 2009 Epicentre, Médecins Sans Frontieres’ research and training arm, established its third research center in Niger, adding to the existing ones in Paris and Uganda. Their goal was to create a West African hub to develop implementable solutions to clinical and public health issues. Since then, the Niger Research Center has developed a strong research portfolio and built capacity to investigate epidemics, conduct clinical trials and prevalence surveys and implement alerting and monitoring systems while working closely with the Niger Ministry of Health. However, Niger and the Sahel remain one of the least developed regions in the world with poor academic, research and health infrastructure. 

What we do

The Elsevier Foundation partnership supports the visibility and policymaking engagement of the Niger Hub within the West African health community as well as the training of Epicentre Niger’s staff. Key scientific staff such as field investigators, lab technicians, epidemiologists and clinical statisticians have received advanced individual and institutional training in technical areas and have been able to present at Epicentre’s Scientific and Medical Days, attend courses and conferences, build international networks, and take up other training assignments in MSF programs and African research centers. 

How we deliver

The partnership works to:

• Provide opportunities outside of Niger for Epicentre’s staff to receive additional training to further their careers, develop their own research programs and lead locally relevant research. 
• Encourage medical and scientific staff from Niger and surrounding countries to be mentored and mentor others to sustain a vibrant research culture. 
• Provide opportunities for staff to promote Epicentre’s visibility and encourage discussion on pressing medical research issues. 
• Provide internet infrastructure to improve capacity to conduct research, including access to Elsevier’s in-kind content contributions.