hrp联盟在行动：优先考虑法语非洲地区的地方知识共享

Page2The regional hub based at the Institut de Rechercheen Sciences de la Santé (IRSS) located in BurkinaFaso, with the support of the HRP Alliance, hasemerged as a true success story in research capacitystrengthening for sexual and reproductive healthand rights (SRHR) in francophone Africa. The hubhas taken a bold and inventive approach, centeredon developing advanced academic programmes,fostering data science excellence and creating astrong regional network for knowledge exchange onSRHR topics. By prioritizing graduate-level training inpublic health and related fields, the IRSS is addressingthe region’s critical shortage of skilled researchers.“There was a significant absence of opportunities foryoung researchers who wanted to work in sexual andreproductive health,” Seni Kouanda, HRP Alliance hubPrincipal Investigator, explained, highlighting how theHRP Alliance addressed this gap by offering trainingprogrammes to local researchers, including master’sand PhD opportunities.Collaborating with the Institut Africain de SantéPublique (IASP), the hub is working around the clockto ensure graduates are equipped with rigorousmethodological, analytical and management skills.Credit IRSS By providing sustained funding and strategicguidance, the HRP Alliance enabled the creationof scholarships for SRHR specific master and PhDstudents and facilitated sponsorship seeking forimportant infrastructure such as a data science centre.The centre will introduce a robust infrastructurefor handling complex SRHR datasets, enhancingthe research capacity of local, young researchersand paving the way for strong data analysis andinterpretation.Responding to regional challengesThe region’s challenges, including limited researchinfrastructure, a shortage of trained professionalsand political instability, required adaptive strategies.While notable progress has been made in the regionregarding SRHR, for example, according to the latestFamily Planning 2023 report, West and Central Africaare one of the most rapidly growing regions in terms ofannual modern contraceptive prevalence, the situationremains critical. Family planning needs remain unmetfor more than50% of women in the region, leading tounintended pregnancies and higher risks of maternaland neonatal complications. Kouanda emphasized that the hub’s initiativeswere deeply rooted in addressing local issues: “Weworked closely with institutions to ensure our effortsdirectly met their needs, whether it was training onprogramme evaluation or qualitative data analysis.”The hub continued to support SRHR research,such as projects on antenatal care strategies andimplementation of WHO safe childbirth checklist.The support to understand and investigate pressinghealth needs together with targeted capacity-strengthening workshops on systematic reviews,research methodology and knowledge transfertransformed the hub into a true success story.Key learnings and regional spilloverThe hub’s experience highlights the importanceof building dedicated and skilled local researchersthrough sustained, long-term investment in educationand infrastructure. The approach tailored programmesto address the specific needs of Francophone Africa,such as creating research units within less-establishedinstitutions in Chad and Niger and forming a networkof nine partner institutions across eight countries toCredit IRSSTieba Millogo, HRP Alliance Fellow, defends his PhD thesis, May 2022 foster peer learning and collaborative research. Thehub has established a continuous collaboration withnetwork partner institutions to create SRHR researchunits in the respective institutions, particularly inBurkina Faso, Guinea and Cote d’Ivoire.The impact of Burkina Faso’s hub is evident inits achievements. Since the establishment of thehub, 50 students have received master’s and PhDtraining, with alumni taking leadership roles inacademia, research institutions and public healthsystems across the region. Tieba Millogo, oneof the students supported by the HRP Alliance,reported on his experience: “I had the opportunityto coordinate a multi- country research project,closely working with other junior researchers tomonitor the field implementation of the project[the implementation of the WHO Safe ChildbirthChecklist in three countries]. I took a significant rolein training field staff and developing and enforcingstandard operating procedures in all countries.”Millogo said his career was undoubtedly enhancedthanks to the support received from the HRPAlliance: “I have developed significant management developed by the hub are informing national andregional health strategies. Abou Coulibaly, one of thePhD students supported by the HRP Alliance,led thelocal implementation of a groundbreaking study onwomen’s use of contraception during the postpartumperiod. “Preventing closely spaced pregnanciessignificantly affects maternal and child health byreducing maternal and neonatal morbidity andmortality, particularly in sub-Saharan African countrieslike B