COHAFA delegation visits ITM

On 28 May 2024, the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM) in Antwerp had the honor of hosting around 40 delegates from the Council Working Group on Humanitarian Aid and Food Aid (COHAFA) and EU representatives. The delegates were introduced to ITM’s rich history, significance, and extensive work in international health, including research, capacity sharing, and public health initiatives.

Event Highlights

Welcome and Introduction

• The event began with a welcome coffee, followed by a general introduction to ITM by Director Lut Lynen, who elaborated on ITM’s history and its crucial partnerships in the field of tropical medicine.

Plenary Session Presentations

• Kevin Ariën shared insights into the development of diagnostics suitable for outbreak diseases.
• Laurens Liesenborghs then shared his experiences with mpox outbreaks on various continents.
• Raffaella Ravinetto discussed ethical and regulatory challenges in conducting clinical and public health interventions during outbreaks.
• The session concluded with a Q&A led by Lut Lynen.

Training and research skills lab

Delegates were given a tour in ITM’s skills lab, where Anne-Sophie Heroes, Liselotte Hardy and PhD-student Jocelyne Kalema highlighted the institute’s training programs and research tailored to low-resource settings.

(Text adapted from ITM’s communication by Johan Uijttebroeck)