Author: Alex Kandie

24-27 November 2025 | Lagos, Nigeria

The Africa Pandemic Sciences Collaborative exists to strengthen Africa’s capacity for pandemic preparedness through evidence-driven decision-making, strong institutions, and learning systems that respond to context. This was a central message highlighted over four days of a workshop that recently took place in Lagos, Nigeria.

Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) leads from all seven EPSILON consortia met in Lagos for a four-day onboarding workshop aimed at strengthening alignment, sharpening shared understanding, and establishing a unified approach to monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning across the Collaborative.

Co-hosted by SHARPER and SPIL-OVA consortia based at the University of Ibadan and Redeemer’s University respectively, the workshop brought together programme managers, workstream leads, and partners from Mastercard Foundation, SFA Foundation, the Pandemic Sciences Institute and a representative from the Africa Oxford Initiative.

The importance of MEAL to the Collaborative

The University of Ibadan’s College of Medicine Provost, Professor Temidayo O. Ogundiran officially welcomed participants to Lagos and delivered the keynote address at the workshop. In his speech, he highlighted the significance of the MEAL function to the success of the Collaborative’s work.

“I am informed that this onboarding workshop has been carefully put together to strengthen all seven EPSILONs and to equip you with the necessary tools and frameworks to track progress, document results, and define learning, plus engage other stakeholders meaningfully. A robust MEAL system is needed to ensure that interventions are timely, decisions are evidenced correctly, progress is measured, and our impact is sustained – it should be rooted in transparency, excellence and shared commitment to deliver on the goals of the Collaborative”, Prof. Ogundiran remarked.

Carol Nuga, Director of Impact at the Mastercard Foundation, highlighted the evolution of the Foundation’s work – from individual scholarships to institutional strengthening, workforce development, and network-building to increase social capital to achieve our shared goals. She emphasised that MEAL is central to realising impact, influencing ecosystems, and ensuring young people benefit from dignified and fulfilling career pathways.

Building shared understanding and operationalisation of the MEAL Function

Over the four-day workshop, participants explored the structure of the Collaborative, the role of MEAL as a cross-cutting function, and the distinction between programme-level implementation by the EPSILONs and the overarching strategy led through wrap-around activities. Sessions reflecting on the Collaborative’s Theory of Change prompted deep discussion on accountability, influence, contextual differences and how MEAL can capture progress in real time.

The workshop also surfaced operational realities – from language diversity and bureaucratic constraints to the need for clear data responsibilities and integrated reporting systems. Demonstrations of the Collaborative’s MEAL tool helped teams understand how indicators, dashboards and learning inputs will be managed across institutions.

A panel on research-to-policy influence underscored the importance of trust, evidence synthesis, and science communication – key capabilities the Collaborative aims to strengthen across EPSILON teams. Additional sessions focused on impact storytelling, responsible communication, and the role of MEAL in shaping narratives of change.

Days three and four focused on translating principles into practice. Teams reviewed indicators at EPSILON and Collaborative levels, explored data flow and responsibilities, and discussed the MEAL tool that will support real-time reporting and learning.

By the final day, participants revisited the Collaborative’s Theory of Change with new clarity, refining their contributions and areas of influence. The workshop closed with a shared commitment to co-creation, continuous learning, and to building MEAL systems that reflect African contexts and strengthen pandemic readiness.

“This meeting has been engaging and packed with a lot of information. But most importantly, it has been useful in clarifying a lot of things, especially at the beginning of our work in the consortia, before activities kick-off and we need to change tack mid-way. I am grateful for this opportunity and go away with a better understanding of what lies ahead of us,” said Purity Wambui, a MEAL lead from the CLEAR-Africa consortium.

Looking Ahead

Across four days, one message rang consistently: this Collaborative is an opportunity to build something transformative – not only for institutions, but for African health systems, scientific ecosystems, and future generations of researchers and policymakers.

The MEAL onboarding workshop did more than align frameworks. It built trust. It clarified roles. It surfaced the complexity and promise of working across contexts, disciplines and expectations. And it reminded participants that the strength of the Collaborative lies in the people driving it.

“Having missed the inception meeting in Nairobi, I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this workshop. Before this, I was very confused about the whole Collaborative and how it works. I also had a limited scope to the objectives and goals of the programme. But now, I have a big picture view of what we are trying to do, and how everything fits in together,” said Dr Chinedu Ugwu, a co-lead from the SPIL-OVA consortium.

Together, the Collaborative is laying the groundwork for rigorous science, stronger systems, and evidence that genuinely shapes Africa’s readiness for future epidemics and pandemics.

The Surveillance Platforms and Immunology for Zoonotic Viruses with Pandemic Potential in Africa (SPIL-OVA) programme has officially launched, marking a major step toward proactive pandemic preparedness on the continent. The initiative focuses on identifying and characterising high-risk viruses circulating in African bat populations before they spread to humans or domestic animals.

SPIL-OVA will collect bat samples from East, West, and Southern Africa and use advanced laboratory and computational techniques to analyse viral diversity and assess spillover risk. By comparing newly identified bat viruses with known human and animal pathogens, the programme will flag viruses with pandemic potential for further laboratory testing. Where a high likelihood of human infection is identified, prototype vaccine components—known as immunogens—will be designed to support rapid outbreak response.

Reflecting on the kick-off meeting, Prof Charles Sande described the programme as a milestone for African-led science, “It was a coming of age moment, where the continent’s scientific priorities were defined by Africans, led by Africans and managed by Africans.”

For Dr Constantinos Kurt Wibmer, the launch signalled the start of discovery-driven science: “SPIL-OVA kicked off a thrilling hunt for hidden viruses… decoding every fold and helix, spilling viral secrets one crystal blueprint at a time.”

The kick-off meeting brought partners together for in-depth planning and scientific exchange, setting the foundation for long-term collaboration. Dr Jinal Bhiman noted that the discussions highlighted the strength of the consortium, “The meeting was an excellent prelude to the next five years of collaboration as we drive next-generation innovation and strengthen Africa’s pandemic preparedness.”

Looking ahead, Dr Chinedu Ugwu emphasised the programme’s broader impact, “From elucidating Africa’s bat virome to creating immunogen libraries, we are building the foundations for future vaccines and global health resilience.”

By combining virus discovery, risk analysis, and vaccine preparedness, SPIL-OVA aims to create an early-warning system that shifts pandemic response in Africa from reactive to preventive.

The Prevention and Response to Emerging Viruses with Pandemic Potential in Africa (PREPARE) Network officially launched with a virtual inception meeting held on 14 July 2025, bringing together project teams from Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Côte d’Ivoire, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The meeting marked the start of a five-year programme aimed at strengthening Africa’s capacity to detect, prevent, and respond to emerging and re-emerging viral threats.

Led administratively by the Africa Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) and scientifically by Wits University, the inception meeting focused on introducing country teams, aligning on governance and administrative processes, and outlining the programme’s scientific and capacity-strengthening priorities. Partners endorsed a governance structure that includes a Management Committee and an independent Scientific Advisory Board to guide scientific quality and oversee capacity-building awards.

PREPARE is establishing key regional nodes across South, East, and West Africa, with a focus on clinical disease surveillance, multi-pathogen diagnostics, genomics and pathogen discovery, prototype vaccine development, and capacity strengthening. Clinical sites will use retrospectively collected samples alongside expanded prospective syndromic surveillance in humans, animals, and the environment to detect both known and unknown pathogens.

Capacity strengthening is a core pillar of the programme. Partners reviewed planned investments, including PhD positions, fellowships, exchange awards, and catalyst grants, alongside discussions on monitoring, evaluation, and communications. Country teams also shared existing surveillance platforms and laboratory capabilities, confirming strong foundations for implementing the programme’s One Health approach.

The meeting concluded with agreement on immediate next steps, including finalising contracts, constituting the Scientific Advisory Board, onboarding research staff once funds are released, and establishing regular check-ins to support coordinated implementation across the network.