On November 7, 2022, the online training course of the JICA Knowledge Co-Creation Program (KCCP) “Nurturing Researchers of Countermeasures for Zoonosis including a Parasitic Disease” started. A total of 14 trainees (6 from Ethiopia, 3 from Congo, 2 from Uganda, 2 from Zambia, and 1 from Paraguay) participated in this training course.
On January 31, 2023, the trainees arrived in Japan, and on February 2, a welcome ceremony was held at the National Research Center for Protozoan Diseases, where the trainees gave a presentation introducing themselves.
The hands-on seminar was held from February 6 to 9, 2023, where each trainee learned the basics of molecular biological experiments.
(Lecturer: Associate Prof. Masahito Asada, Associate Prof. Rika Umemiya-Shirafuji, Assistant Prof. Keisuke Suganuma, Assistant Prof. Yohei Takeda, Dr. Nanang Rudianto Ariefta, Dr. Nanako Ushio, Dr. Uday Mohanta, Dr. Azirwan Guswanto, Dr. Maria Angenica Fulo Regilme)
After the hands-on seminar, the trainees learned various research techniques in each laboratory.
During a tour to Sapporo, the participants visited International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University and the Hokkaido University Museum to deepen their knowledge of zoonosis caused by highly pathogenic viruses and scientific research in Japan.
At the end of the ceremony, they were awarded certificates of completion of this training course.
We sincerely wish them all the best in their future endeavors!
(Reported by Masahito Asada and Rika Umemiya-Shirafuji)