By Dr Murjanatu M. Abba
The Africa Centre of Excellence for Neglected Tropical Diseases and Forensic Biotechnology (ACENTDFB), Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, has trained 30 postgraduate students and researchers in bioinformatics in collaboration with the African Genome Centre, Université Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P), Morocco. Participants gained practical skills in R programming for microbial ecology and metagenomics.
The four-day capacity-building programme, held recently at ACENTDFB, was facilitated by Dr Jean Legeay, a researcher specialising in microbial ecology, metabarcoding and computational biology.
The training builds on the growing partnership between ACENTDFB and UM6P, which followed a working visit by representatives of the Moroccan institution to Nigeria earlier in the year. It forms part of the Centre’s broader effort to strengthen research capacity through international collaboration and advanced scientific training.
Participants received hands-on instruction in fundamental and advanced R programming, data visualisation using ggplot2, microbial ecology, metabarcoding, biodiversity analysis and metagenomic data processing. The programme combined theoretical lectures with practical exercises, giving participants competencies applicable to contemporary biological and genomic research.
Speaking virtually at the closing ceremony, the Centre Leader of ACENTDFB, Professor Y.K.E. Ibrahim, commended participants for their dedication and enthusiasm throughout the training. He thanked Dr Legeay and the African Genome Centre, UM6P, for their partnership and technical support in advancing bioinformatics capacity among the participating researchers.
Professor Ibrahim urged participants to apply their newly acquired bioinformatics skills in their research and to pass the knowledge to colleagues and younger researchers, so as to extend the training’s impact within the scientific community.
Certificates of participation were presented to all 30 participants at the close of the programme. The ceremony, attended by ACENTDFB staff and the resource person, ended on a high note, with participants expressing confidence in applying their new skills to microbial ecology and metagenomics research.
