Wellcome will provide an initial £40 million for two new consortiums in Southern and Western Africa with a further £20 million earmarked to set up a third consortium in Eastern Africa.
Oxford researchers join as a member of the Western Africa consortium, led by Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. Working alongside African partners they will focus on the impact of heatwaves, dust storms and drought on people’s health and nutrition to develop effective policies that also take into consideration the economic costs and benefits.
Oxford’s contribution brings expertise from three institutes: Sara Khalid, from the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences (NDORMS), Luke Allen from the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences (NDPCHS), and Jacob McKnight from the Nuffield Department of Medicine (NDM). Together, they will support the development of advanced climate-health models, economic analyses and policy frameworks that translate evidence into practice.
Professor Philip Antwi-Agyei, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana and Western Africa consortium lead says:
‘Climate change is an escalating threat to global health and West Africa is among the most vulnerable regions due to high exposure to climate hazards, low adaptive capacity, and fragile health systems. Intensifying climate-related health risks are compounding existing inequities, straining public health systems, undermining food security and disrupting livelihoods, with GDP losses projected to rise significantly across the region.'