Summary Information

LusoAfro-BioEthics: Strengthening Bioethics Committees in Lusophone African Region Project Reference: CSA2016ERC-1423

In the last decade, in Lusophone African countries, like in other countries from Africa, health research has increased and in response Research Ethics Committees (REC) have been established namely in Universities, Research Centers and Ministries of Health. But RECs in these countries still face a serious lack of staff trained in research ethics, and the “language divide” is an important barrier faced by them, as the main ethics educational resources are only available in English. Being aware of this issues, and recognizing that although the strengthening of RECsis primarily a national issue, much can be gained by taking advantage of networking by establishing a north south consortium, in order to strength the ethical framework of African Lusophone Countries (ALC) to conduct clinical and health research.