Third Meeting of the DS-I Africa Consortium
3 November - 9 November 2023

Prof Gordon Awandare - Participant

Public Understanding of Big data in Genomics Medicine in Africa (PUBGEM-Africa) (Co-PI)

Gordon Awandare is the Pro Vice-Chancellor responsible for Academic and Students Affairs at University of Ghana. He is a Professor of Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology and the Founding Director of the West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP). He obtained his BSc Biochemistry degree in 1998 and MPhil Biochemistry in 2002, both from the University of Ghana. He subsequently undertook his doctoral studies at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he graduated with a PhD degree in Infectious Diseases and Microbiology in 2007. Prof Awandare did his postdoctoral fellowship at the Malaria Vaccine Division of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Silver Spring, Maryland from 2007-2010. He was Head of Department of Biochemistry from 2013 to 2017, and in 2014, he led the establishment of WACCBIP after winning one of the World Bank's African Centres of Excellence grants. Subsequently Prof Awandare has led WACCBIP to mobilize over $40m to University of Ghana for equipment, infrastructure, and fellowships to over 300 scientists from 15 African countries for Masters, doctoral and postdoctoral training. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Prof Awandare's team have played a leading role in Ghana's response by providing research data on seroprevalence and genomic diversity of circulating SARS-CoV-2 viruses. He has supervised 14 postdoctoral fellows, 20 PhD students and 23 Master's students and has more than 130 peer-reviewed journal publications in a wide range of journals, including some of the leading infectious diseases and immunology journals. Prof Awandare was a recipient of the Royal Society Pfizer award for 2015 for achievements in molecular and cellular studies of malaria, and science capacity building in Africa. At the University of Ghana, he received the Distinguished Award for Meritorious Service in 2014, Citation of Honor in recognition of contributions to science development in the College of Basic and Applied Sciences in particular, and University of Ghana in general in 2020 and Meritorious Award in Recognition of Outstanding Service, College of Basic and Applied Sciences in 2021. He is a Fellow of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Society of Biology of the UK. In 2019, he was appointed the first Global Editor for Africa for Experimental Biology and Medicine, the journal of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine. He also serves on numerous prestigious international boards and committees, including, Chairman, West African Network of Infectious Disease ACEs (WANIDA), a World Bank/French Government funded collaborative network for training and research; Member, Expert Advisory Board, Wellcome Trust Centre for Infectious Diseases Research in Africa (CIDRI), University of Cape Town, South Africa; Deputy Director and Member of Steering Committee, Crick African Network, Francis Crick Institute, UK, Member; Steering Committee, National Institute of Health Research Global Research Unit on Tackling Infections to Benefit Africa (TIBA), University of Edinburgh, UK; Member, Technical Consultant, Science Engagement to support Evidence Informed Policy Responses to COVID-19 in Africa, Africa Academy of Sciences, Nairobi, Kenya; Member, Lancet COVID-19 Commission, Africa task Force; Member, Editorial Board, Parasitology; Member, MalariaGEN Governance Committee, Wellcome Sanger Institute, UK; Member of Council, Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine; Member, Advisory Board, AAS Open Research, African Academy of Sciences; Member, Wellcome Sanger Institute Advanced Courses and Scientific Conferences Steering Group, UK.