Friday, May 9, 2025
5/9/2025
African Society of Human Genetics (AfSHG) - The African Society of Human Genetics (AfSHG) was formed in 2003 to ensure that Africa is not left out of the genomic revolution. The society was also intended to provide a forum so that African researchers and those actively engaged in research on the continent can interact and exchange information relevant to human disease and evolution on a regular basis. These goals have been met through meetings Accra, Ghana – 2003, Washington DC – 2004, Johannesburg, South Africa -2005, Addis Abba, Ethiopia – 2006, Cairo, Egypt - 2007, Yaounde, Cameroon – 2009, Cape Town, South Africa – 2011, Accra - 2013, Dakar, Senegal – 2016, Cairo, Egypt – 2017, Kigali, Rwanda – 2018, and Bamako, Mali – 2019. Scientists and physicians representing dozens of countries have attended these past meetings. These meetings have advanced the fundamental goals of the society including education, networking, capacity building, and research development. In addition, this Society through previous meetings has been instrumental in the development of the African Genome Project. The current proposal is requesting funding for this meeting to be held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in the fall of 2020. The theme of the upcoming meeting will be “Human genetics and genomics as a unifying factor for harmony and progress in Africa”. We recognize that as the genomic revolution develops it is important that equity in genetic research and translation into clinical practice needs to be seriously addressed. Previous meetings have dealt with some of these issues, and the results of these meetings have been incorporated into the global genomics enterprise to the extent that African studies, although still relatively rare, are gaining prominence in the genetics literature. The theme of the upcoming meeting has been designed to specially incorporate several issues in modern genomics research, including the use of Next Generation Sequencing to detect all variants, the role of stem cell research in genetics research and the practical and ethical issues surrounding biobanking of samples in Africa. The Microbiome and Health, Human History and Population Genetics, Genomic Medicine, Networking/Resource Building and Developing Collaborations, and Bioethics and Benefit Sharing. Invited speakers include Guida Landore (Mali), Raj Ramesar (South Africa), Julie Makani (Tanzania), Collet Dandara (South Africa), Youssef Idaghdou (NYU, Abu Dhabi), and Charles Rotimi (NIH), many of whom have attended previous meetings of the AfSHG.
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