The Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) and Kano Independent Research Centre Trust (KIRCT) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen the country’s research capacity.
The MoU was signed on Monday in Lagos.
Prof. Babatunde Salako, the Director-General of NIMR, said the partnership would support research into home-grown solutions to addressing the various health challenges in the country.
Salako said it would also create a viable platform for both organisations to harness their different capacities and capabilities in the area of research.
‘This partnership is key because it will support home-grown solutions which can come from products of research.
‘In Africa, most of the solutions we have are not from us; our genetic architecture are not taken into consideration in many drugs and vaccine production.
‘We see this as opportunity to harness our different capacities of and make significant impact in the area of drugs and vaccine production,’ he said.
Also, Prof. Hamisu Salihu,
the Director-General of KIRCT, said the partnership between both organisations would complement the effort of the government on health security.
Salihu said both institutes played significant roles in responding to disease outbreaks in the country, noting that it would expand the bio-medical entity of the country.
According to him, the overall goal of the partnership is to help prevent the next disease outbreak or epidemic in Kano and Nigeria at large
‘This agreement with NIMR will benefit the country greatly because we have realised that NIMR is the foremost and well known research institute in the country.
See also Insurers, medical consultant charge Nigerians on unity
‘The KIRCT is also an independent organisation which have the capacity to to expand and it’s supported by the Kano State government and Pfizer pharmaceuticals
‘We see them as a priority partner with the track record to push us forward in terms of capacity building, visionary direction on some of the local challenges we face in Kano.’
H
e explained that diseases including meningitis, malaria and tuberculosis, as well as pregnant women would be given more priority due to their burden in the state and the country as a whole.
Source: News Agency of Nigeria