The Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine together with its partners has commissioned a Bio-Safety Level 3 Laboratory at its premises at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.
The Bio-Safety Laboratory would enable KCCR enhance the capacity and quality of its research output. It is the second in the Country alongside that of the Nogouchi Memorial Institute of Medical Research at the University of Ghana, Legon. The Laboratory would be suitable for the safe investigation of highly contagious pathogens causing occasional disease outbreak in Ghana.
The Laboratory will also be used to handle a wide variety of viruses including rabies, cases of hemorrhagic fever, Lassa and Yellow fever viruses that are responsible for Flu pandemics. The Lab is expected to play an important role in the surveillance and monitoring of bacteria in Ghana.
In a keynote address, Professor William O. Ellis, Vice-Chancellor of KNUST said continuous improvement in the KCCR Labfacilities at KCCR was a reflection of the strong bond between KCCR and its partners. He said KNUST as an Institution has Research as one of its core mandates and that is why the University has been working together with the Centre. He commended the Ministry of Health and all other partners of KCCR for their support. He stressed the importance of the Bio-Safety Laboratory to the work of KCCR.
A representative of the Ministry of Health on the KCCR Advisory Board, Mr. Isaac Adams, said with the persistent health challenges confronting Ghanaians, he is hopeful that the Laboratory would stimulate research that will provide relevant solutions. He pledged the Ministry’s continuous support for the Centre.
KCCR is a research facility of the College of Health Sciences of the KNUST, and is working in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi and the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM), Hamburg. KCCR is involved in research into malaria, elephantiasis, river blindness, tuberculosis, Buruli ulcer disease and neglected tropical diseases.
