Dr. Sheriff Ceesay, a GamREMTI MSc Research Ethics and Methodology Scholar and at the UTG, received a D300,000 research grant award from the National Research and Innovation Fund (NRIF) to fund his research thesis. NRIF Awards over D15 Million to 17 Gambian Researchers and Innovators at the Inaugural Cycle 1 Research and Innovation Funding Award Ceremony. The ceremony was held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara International Conference Centre in Bijilo, The Gambia, and marks a significant milestone in the government’s commitment to investing in the nation’s research ecosystem. The 17 winners were selected from a pool of 159 applicants who submitted research proposals across diverse fields including education, agriculture, technology, health, and other priority sectors.
Dr Ceesay’s study, Assessing the Capacity, Operations, and Challenges of Research Ethics Committees in The Gambia: A Mixed-Methods Study, will provide the first national assessment of research ethics review systems in The Gambia, where no national research ethics committee currently exists. Using surveys, interviews, and document reviews, his study will map existing research ethics committees (RECs), assess capacity, identify operational challenges, and develop recommendations to strengthen the responsible conduct of research and research ethics governance. Expected outputs include a national REC mapping report, policy recommendations, a capacity-building agenda, an open-access publication, and stakeholder dissemination activities.
The project responds to a documented national governance challenge and directly supports NRIF’s research integrity and institutional strengthening goals. Dr. Ceesay will conduct the study under the supervision of his GamREMTI mentors.
The GamREMTI Program is Funded by the Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health in the United States.
