CALL FOR MSc SCHOLARSHIPS IN BIOSTATISTICS FOR THE 2024 ACADEMIC YEAR DELTAS AFRICA SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN CONSORTIUM FOR ADVANCED

BIOSTATISTICS (SSACAB) II PROGRAMME
APPLICATION DEADLINE: JULY 31, 2023

DESCRIPTION:

Title	Sub-Saharan African Consortium for Advanced Biostatistics (SSACAB)
Consortium Members	Six African institutions Two northern partner institutions Nine collaborating institutions
Lead Institution	University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Funding Source	Developing Excellence in Leadership, Training, and Science in Africa (DELTAS Africa) program, supported by the Science for Africa Foundation (SFA), Wellcome Trust, and the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)
Objective	Enhance biostatistical skills and capacity among researchers in Sub-Saharan Africa

ELIGIBILITY:

Eligible Candidates	– Strong background in Statistics, Mathematics, Demography, or other quantitative fields – Candidates from health science fields, such as biomedical sciences, pharmacy, and medicine – Candidates who completed masters’ coursework and require research support
Nationality Requirement	Nationals of low and middle-income countries in the Sub-Saharan African region
Age Requirement	Applicants should be under 35 years old

MSc SCHOLARSHIP PACKAGE:

The MSc scholarships for the 2024 academic year include:

| Covered Expenses |

• Tuition fees and basic medical insurance

• Monthly stipend for accommodation and living expenses

• Support for the MSc research project and supervision

• Travel costs between the academic training institution and the host research institution |

ADDITIONAL MSc SCHOLARSHIP INFORMATION:

Applications must include the following documents:

| Required Documents |

• Comprehensive curriculum vitae with relevant research and work experience

• Letter of motivation for pursuing an MSc in Biostatistics

• Certified copies of academic transcripts and degree certificates

• Evidence of acceptance or application to study Biostatistics at a partner institution in 2024

• Two confidential referee reports sent directly to the training institution |

RESEARCH QUESTIONS TO BE FUNDED:

SSACAB II is interested in funding research on the following seven key questions:

1. How can data science, machine learning, deep learning, or artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms enhance personalized treatment for patients with communicable and non-communicable diseases in Africa?
2. How will the spatial and temporal occurrence and patterns of critical diseases in Africa respond to predicted climate and environmental changes, and how will this impact public health and development outcomes?
3. Can we identify the relationship between personal characteristics, environmental changes, and diseases through causal modeling and structural equation modeling?
4. How can we use observational data to assess interventions where clinical trials are unethical or to evaluate ongoing public health interventions?
5. What methods can be used to account for missing data in health research?
6. How can we use bioinformatics to enable laboratories to analyze their own omics data?
7. What biostatistics methods can be used for data triangulation and synthesis of evidence?

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF PARTNERS’ ROLE ON THE SEVEN QUESTIONS:

Partner Institution	Research Theme
Wits University	– Machine learning and AI algorithms for enhancing population-based prevention and treatment of diseases – Spatial and temporal methods for understanding the impact of climate variability and change on human health and development
University of Abomey-Calavi	Causal modeling, eco-epidemiology, and structural equation modeling to identify relationships between personal characteristics, environmental changes, and diseases
University of Kwa-Zulu Natal	Modeling missing data, including complex high-dimensional correlated data, in health research
Moi University	Using observational data to assess interventions when clinical trials are not feasible
KEMRI Wellcome Trust Research Programme	Bioinformatics for enabling laboratories and research institutions in Africa to analyze their own -omics data
University of Pretoria and South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC)	Biostatistics methods for data triangulation and synthesis of evidence
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM)	Providing senior statistical advice and co-supervision support for all research themes
University Medical Center Utrecht	Providing senior statistical advice and co-supervision support for all research themes

HOW TO APPLY:

The application process consists of two steps:

1. Apply for admission to the preferred host training institution.
2. Submit a separate written application for the DELTAS Africa SSACAB II scholarship to Dr. Pascalia Munyewende (pascalia.munyewende@wits.ac.za) with a copy to Prof. Eustasius Musenge (eustasius.musenge@wits.ac.za).

Eligible applicants should have applied for a place at either the partner or collaborating
institutions offering postgraduate biostatistics degree programs.
The scholarship is open to nationals of low and middle-income countries in the Sub-Saharan
African region who are resident in the region as per World Bank definition:
https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/articles/906519#Sub_Saharan_Africa

FULL LIST OF PARTNERS AND COLLABORATING INSTITUTIONS:

Institution	Country	Institutional Lead	Email
University of the Witwatersrand	South Africa	Tobias Chirwa	Tobias.Chirwa@wits.ac.za
University Medical Center Utrecht	Netherlands	Daniel Oberski	D.L.Oberski@umcutrecht.nl
University of Abomey-Calavi	Benin	Romain Glele Kakai	glele.romain@gmail.com
Kemri Wellcome Trust Research Programme (KWTRP)	Kenya	Samson Kinyanjui	skmuchina@kemri-wellcome.org
University of Pretoria and South Africa Medical Research Council (SAMRC)	South Africa	Samuel Manda	samuel.manda@up.ac.za
University of KwaZulu-Natal	South Africa	Henry Mwambi	mwambih@ukzn.ac.za
Moi University	Kenya	Ann Mwangi	annwsum@gmail.com
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM)	United Kingdom	Jim Todd	Jim.Todd@LSHTM.ac.uk
University of Zambia	Zambia	Patrick Musonda	pmuzho@hotmail.com
University of Nairobi	Kenya	Patrick Weke	pweke@uonbi.ac.ke
Makerere University	Uganda	Nazarius Tumwesigye	naz@musph.ac.ug
University of Malawi	Malawi	Jupiter Simbeye	jsimbeye@unima.ac.mw
University of Namibia	Namibia	Lawrence Kazembe	lKazembe@unam.na
Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College	Tanzania	Michael Mahande	jmmahande@gmail.com
Stellenbosch University	South Africa	Taryn Young	tyoung@sun.ac.za
University of Gondar	Ethiopia	Tadesse Awoke Ayele	tadesse.awoke@uog.edu.et
MRC Unit, The Gambia	The Gambia	Nuredin Mohammed	Nuredin.Mohammed@lshtm.ac.uk
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology	Ghana	Emmanuel Kweku Nakua	manyorogh@yahoo.com
ISTM, Kinshasa	DRC	Prof Marie Claire Omanyondo	claireoma30@yahoo.com

Please note that the Northern Partners listed above provide supervision support and will not be training students.