agenda DAY 1 : JULY 29, 2024 – COLLABORATION & IMPACT

8:00 AM – Doors Open for Registration at Freetown City Council Auditorium

9:00 AM – Welcome Remarks by:

Mohamed Samai, Deputy Vice Chancellor, College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences
Kilongo Papy Mulailwa, Medical Director, Partners In Health
Nevan Krogan, Director, Quantitative Biosciences Institute, UC San Francisco

Session One: ChAIRED BY ADOLFO GARCIA-SASTRE

9:15 AM – Charles Senessie, Ministry of Health & Sanitation, Sierra Leone | Opening Speech

10:00 AM – Nevan Krogan, Quantitative Biosciences Institute, UC San Francisco, United States

"Breaking Down Barriers to Facilitate Collaborations in Science"

10:25 AM – Onikepe Folarin, African Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases (ACEGID), Redeemer's University, Nigeria

"Genomics Surveillance for Pathogen Discovery and Characterization in Africa by Africans"

10:50 AM – Greg Towers, University College London, England

"Does Innate Immune Evasion Define Pandemic Viruses?"

11:15 AM – Break

11:45 AM – Mohamed Samai, joined by Augustine Fomba & Kwabena Owusu, University of Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone

"Improving Early Childhood Survival: Update From the Icaria and Multiple Malaria Studies"

12:10 PM – Joia Mukherjee, Harvard Medical School / PIH, United States

"Universal Health Coverage and Infectious Disease"

12:35 PM – Soka Moses, Partnership for Research on Vaccines and Infectious Diseases in Liberia (PREVAIL), Liberia

"Enhancing Collaborative Clinical Research on Infectious Diseases in the Mano River Subregion: The PREVAIL Experience"

1:00 PM – Lunch

Session Two: CHAIRED BY Jacqueline Kyosiimire-Lugemwa

2:30 PM – Regis Grailhe, Smart-MD / Institut Pasteur, Korea

"Infectious Disease Diagnostics and Research Tools For All"

2:55 PM – Stephen B. Kennedy, UL-PIRE Africa Center, University of Liberia, Liberia

"Sub-Regional Collaboration: A Strategic Approach to Mitigate Infectious Diseases"

3:20 PM – Priya Shah, UC Davis, United States

"Integrating Virology and Engineering to Drive Flavivirus Discovery"

3:45 PM – Jacqueline Fabius, Quantitative Biosciences Institute, UC San Francisco, United States

"Empowering Scientific Collaborations Through Operations and Communications"

4:10 PM – Break

4:40 PM – Panel Discussion | "Addressing Maternal & Child Health Alongside Infectious Disease"

Moderated by Mary Fullah, Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer, Ministry of Health & Sanitation, Sierra Leone featuring:

Dan Okoro, UNFPA
Tom Sesay, Director of Reproductive and Child Health, Ministry of Health
Edward Kommwa, OBGYN, Partners in Health; Sierra Leone Director Of Clinical Education and Quality Improvement
Safula Mansaray, Deputy Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer, Ministry of Health & Sanitation, Sierra Leone

5:25 PM – Closing Remarks by Organizers

agenda DAY 2 : JULY 30, 2024 – RESEARCH TO PREVENTION

Session Three: CHAIRED BY Priya Shah

8:00 AM – Doors Open for Registration at Freetown City Council Auditorium

9:00 AM – Mustapha Kabba, Ministry of Health, Sierra Leone

"Improving Health Outcomes in Sierra Leone by Enhancing Research Capabilities"

9:25 AM – Jacqueline Kyosiimire-Lugemwa, Uganda Virus Research Institute, Uganda

"Invitro Studies on Safety and Efficacy of Natural Therapeutic Products Against SARS-COV-2 from Innovators in Uganda"

9:50 AM – Dan Kelly, UC San Francisco, USA / Wellbody Clinic, Sierra Leone

"Leveraging 'Big Data' and 'Modern Epidemiology Methods' to Move from COVID Vaccine Trials and Learn Lessons from Effectiveness Studies"

10:15 AM – Break

10:45 AM – Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, Icahn School of Medicine Mount Sinai, United States

"A New Vaccine Platform Against Emerging Diseases: Towards a Universal Influenza Virus Vaccine"

11:10 AM – Mariama Mahmoud, Ministry of Health, Sierra Leone

"Implementation of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) Program in Sierra Leone"

11:35 AM – Emma Yee, Cell, United States | Keynote Address

"Publishing at Cell and Cell Press Journals"

12:20 PM – Lunch & Learn Session | "Career Paths in Science", moderated by Jacqueline Fabius & featuring:

Krystal Fontaine, Rezo Therapeutics, United States
Jacqueline Kyosiimire-Lugemwa, Uganda Virus Research Institute, Uganda
Celine Perier, Quantitative Biosciences Institute, UC San Francisco, United States
Isatta Wurie, University of Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone
Emma Yee, Cell, United States

Session Four: CHAIRED BY Mohamed Bailor Barrie

2:20 PM – Sulaiman Lakoh, University of Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone

"Trends in Antimicrobial Resistance and Antibiotic Consumption in Sierra Leone"

2:45 PM – Nolwenn Jouvenet, Institut Pasteur, France

"Clash of the Titans: Flaviviruses and Interferons"

3:10 PM – Krystal Fontaine, Rezo Therapeutics, United States

"To Academia and Beyond: An Unexpected Journey in the Life Sciences"

3:35 PM – Break

4:30 PM – Isatta Wurie, University of Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone

"Quality Assurance of Test Detection Assays"

4:55 PM – Mohamed Bailor Barrie, Wellbody Alliance, Sierra Leone / UC San Francisco, United States

"Rethinking Global Health: Equity, Representation and Inclusion in Conferences, Education, Funding and Authorship"

5:20 PM – Closing Remarks by Organizers