NISH launches with celebratory evening function
Mark Whittaker (Wellcome), Benjamin Kagina (NISH), Mamokgethi Phakeng (UCT) and Sidy Ndiaye (WHO AFRO) at the NISH launch function
It was a night of celebration at the Lagoon Beach Hotel in Cape Town on July 22nd 2022, as we proudly launched NISH – the National Immunization Technical Advisory Group Support Hub at the University of Cape Town (UCT). UCT Vice-Chancellor Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng opened up this momentous occasion with an inspiring keynote address that was followed by Dr Sidy Ndiaye from the WHO Regional Office for Africa (WHO AFRO) and Associate Professor Benjamin Kagina, Director and Principal Investigator of NISH.
Attending the cocktail dinner were representatives of NISH funders and collaborators, including Wellcome, the World Health Organisation (WHO), Sabin Vaccine Institute, Cochrane SA and the Africa Centre for Evidence.
The launch coincided with the start of the NISH's first annual Vaccinology Training for NITAGs, with 34 NITAG members from Niger, Sierra Leone, Madagascar, Angola, Kenya and Uganda in attendance.
Attendees of the evening had the opportunity to interact with the NISH team, who showcased several evidence products in development, including data visualisations, evidence gap maps, library guides and course material for NISH's online course Evidence-Informed Decision-Making (EIDM) Fundamentals for Immunisation Advisors.
About NISH: The National Immunization Technical Advisory Group (NITAG) Support Hub (NISH) is a project of VACFA, the Vaccine for Africa Initiative at the University of Cape Town (UCT), South Africa. NISH is an academic project funded by Wellcome. It provides training, research and scientific support for National Immunisation Technical Advisory Groups (NITAGs) in the 47 countries of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Africa Region.