Research Area

Clinical research and clinical trials on epidemic and pandemic prone infections

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Lead Institution

Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University, Uganda (Dr Christine Sekaggya-Wiltshire)

The Partners

Catholic University of Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo (Professor Patrick de Marie Katoto), Kibong’oto Infectious Diseases Hospital, Tanzania (Professor Stellah Mpagama), University of Cape Town, South Africa (Professor Mario Denti)

Advancing Capacity for Early Phase Trials for Pandemics and Epidemics in Africa (ACCEPT-Africa)

The ACCEPT-Africa Consortium is an initiative focused on strengthening Africa's response to epidemic prone infectious diseases, particularly Mpox, Ebola and Marburg. This project aims to establish a robust clinical trial network across Uganda, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo.

The consortium’s approach includes three main objectives:

  • To evaluate antiviral treatments through three clinical trials
  • To understand community perceptions, ethical considerations, and the feasibility of clinical trials in epidemic-prone areas; and
  • To build sustainable local research capacity by training scientists in pharmacokinetics, trial design, and bioethics.

The project will also assess community attitudes toward new treatments, ensuring that interventions are culturally sensitive and widely accepted. The consortium will contribute to improving Africa’s capacity to conduct early-phase trials for emerging infectious diseases, ultimately helping mitigate future health crises.

About the Consortium Lead

Dr Christine Sekaggya-Wiltshire is a Consultant Physician in the Department of Medicine, Mulago National Referral Hospital and a Senior Research Scientist at the Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University. She has extensive expertise in conducting clinical trials on drugs used to treat tuberculosis and HIV, evaluating their effectiveness in different populations and assessing achievement of target drug concentrations in blood. She conducts clinical work in the area of non-malignant haematology and research in the area of thrombosis and sickle cell disease.

Previously, she was a Fellow of the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) and Fogarty Global Health Fellow; currently, she is an affiliate of the African Academy of Sciences and member of the WHO SDG for Target Product Profiles for TB diagnostics and the WHO Technical Advisory Group on dosing of tuberculosis drugs and clinical trials in pregnancy working group.

Her work has awarded her the Stephen Lawn TB-HIV Leadership Prize, and has led her to key roles in mentoring young scientists and supporting the Ministry of Health in developing the Uganda Clinical Guidelines for common illnesses, essential drugs list, COVID-19 treatment and therapeutic guidelines.