Introduction

A conference that brings together Statisticians, Biometricians, Applied Mathematicians, and other academics from various backgrounds will allow various skill sets, needs, and interests to be voiced during discussions. Accordingly, these participants will contribute to developing and applying statistical and mathematical theory and methods from different perspectives to life sciences. There are many common denominators to be found amid the conversation, as all participants face similar questions regarding how best to use Statistics and Mathematics to enhance their efforts. There are few opportunities for members of the International Biometric Society Sub-Sahara Africa Network (IBS-SUSAN) to convene and engage in fruitful discussions on mutual interests regarding Biometrics. The conference will provide a forum for these groups to learn from each other, address some of their questions with expert presentations, and return to their institutions with fresh ideas.

Date & Venue

Being an active Region of IBS, the Ghana Region is hosting the 18th edition of the IBS-SUSAN Biennial conference at the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science, College of Science from 10th to 15th September, 2023.

About the Conference

The Sub-Saharan Africa Network (SUSAN) of IBS is a network of national biometric groups of Sub-Saharan African countries that promotes the advancement of life sciences through the development, application, and dissemination of effective mathematical and statistical methods. This includes applications in agriculture, medical and health research, infectious diseases, environment and ecology, climate, and other applied sciences such as statistical genetics and bioinformatics. IBS SUSAN 2023 will be the 18th biennial conference that started in Kenya in 1990.

Themes

The conference will be held in Kumasi, Ghana. The theme of the conference is "Human and Environment Interactions: The role of Biometry.”

The subthemes are presented below.

• Environmental Statistical Modelling
• Infectious Diseases Modelling
• Spatial and Spatio-Temporal Modelling in Epidemiology
• Joint Species Distribution Modelling in Ecology
• Host – Pest Modelling
• Machine Learning Applications to Environmental Sustainability and Health
• Climate Change and Health
• Survival Analysis
• Impact Assessment Modelling
• Attitudes and Behaviours towards Nature

The pre-conference workshops will be held on Sunday, 10th September 2023.