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28 September 2020 | Story Andre Damons | Photo Supplied
Dr Martin Nyaga, Senior Lecturer and Researcher: NGS, will be heading the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre (WHO CC).
The University of the Free State (UFS) has been designated a World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre (WHO CC), and the university’s Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) Unit, in partnership with the World Health Organisation (WHO), will for the next four years be conducting genome sequencing of pathogenic organisms, including rotavirus strains from the African continent. 

This centre will be part of the Vaccine Preventable Diseases (VPD) Pathogens Genomics Cluster and will run from September 2020 to September 2024. 

Dr Martin Nyaga, Senior Lecturer and Researcher: NGS/Virology, who will be heading the WHO CC, says an institution is designated as a WHO CC by the WHO Director-General and endorsed by the host country’s minister of health to form part of an international collaborative network, carrying out activities in support of the WHO programmess at all levels. A designation as a WHO CC is a time-limited agreement of collaboration between WHO and the designated institution, through which the latter agrees to implement a series of concrete activities, specifically designed for WHO.

A supreme achievement

Says Dr Nyaga: “In my opinion, a WHO CC designation is one of the supreme achievements an institution can be conferred as a recognition for foregoing exceptional collaborative venture with the WHO and showing future potential to assist the WHO with its global programmes and in our case, the WHO Regional Office for Africa region to offer solutions to the WHO VPD Surveillance and pathogens genomics cluster.”

According to Dr Nyaga this designation was awarded to the UFS after the WHO was content with the outcome of a service contract whereby the UFS-NGS unit undertook a pilot rotavirus surveillance project at whole genome level, using two African countries for the pilot, Rwanda and Zambia.

“From the outcomes of the pilot surveillance project between 2017 and 2019, the WHO/AFRO was satisfied with the genomic data that was generated and partially disseminated in scientific databases and journals as a collaborative venture. 

“It was thus proposed to strengthen its existing collaboration with the UFS-NGS Unit, which initiated the application process to designate the UFS-NGS unit as a WHO CC, an initiative that has taken approximately 20 months to finalise through the different phases of the application and approvals for the designation,” explains Dr Nyaga.

The purpose of the WHO CC

The new WHO CC will upon request by the WHO, implement agreed work plans in a timely manner and to the highest possible standards of quality and must comply with the referred terms of reference and conditions. These include: 
• Conducting genome sequencing of pathogenic organisms causing VPD, including rotavirus strains collected as part of the routine VPD surveillance using NGS technology and analysis of the generated datasets using bioinformatics tools.

• Conducting molecular characterisation of specimens collected during outbreaks and public health emergencies as part of the support for monitoring, preparedness and response to VPD disease outbreaks in Africa.

• Provide technical guidance to WHO on strategies to improve laboratory molecular diagnostics, molecular typing and NGS of rotavirus diarrheal strains and other enteropathogens to detect novel and re-emerging strains. 

• Conduct validation of tools and new molecular diagnostics for detection and characterisation of unusual or rare VPD strains to guide studies and development of new vaccines for VPD.

• Organise capacity-building and training workshops on whole genome sequencing of priority VPD pathogenic organisms.

The impact of the WHO CC on the work of the UFS-NGS 

According to Dr Nyaga, the designation brings extra responsibilities to his work and to the activities of the UFS-NGS unit. “Such initiatives are very welcome to enhance the business aspects, research and academic activities of the UFS-NGS unit, as the benefits are quite holistic since the collaboration enhances co-ownership of data and offers opportunities to train postgraduate students and other scientists.

“It also expands the research infrastructure and most importantly contributes to policy for numerous African governments in important decisions such as vaccine implementation activities, from an informed point of view and managing public health needs that require rapid response like outbreaks that may lead to pandemics.” 
• The current WHO CC designations at South African Institutions of higher learning and research can be found at: 

News Archive

MBA Programme - Question And Answer Sheet - 27 May 2004
2004-05-27

1. WHAT MUST THE UNIVERSITY OF THE FREE STATE (UFS) DO TO GET FULL ACCREDITATION FOR THE MBA PROGRAMMES?

According to the Council on Higher Education’s (CHE) evaluation, the three MBA programmes of the UFS clearly and significantly contribute to students’ knowledge and skills, are relevant for the workplace, are appropriately resourced and have an appropriate internal and external programme environment. These programmes are the MBA General, the MBA in Health Care Management and the MBA in Entrepreneurship.

What the Council on Higher Education did find, was a few technical and administrative issues that need to be addressed.

This is why the three MBA programmes of the UFS received conditional accreditation – which in itself is a major achievement for the UFS’s School of Management, which was only four years old at the time of the evaluation.

The following breakdown gives one a sense of the mostly administrative nature of the conditions that have to be met before full accreditation is granted by the CHE:

a. A formal forum of stakeholders: The UFS is required to establish a more structured, inclusive process of review of its MBA programmes. This is an administrative formality already in process.

b. A work allocation model: According to the CHE this is required to regulate the workload of the teaching staff, particularly as student numbers grow, rather than via standard management processes as currently done.

c. Contractual agreements with part-time staff: The UFS is required to enter into formal agreements with part-time and contractual staff as all agreements are currently done on an informal and claim-basis. This is an administrative formality already in process.

d. A formal curriculum committee: According to the CHE, the School of Management had realised the need for a structure – other than the current Faculty Board - where all MBA lecturers can deliberate on the MBA programmes, and serve as a channel for faculty input, consultation and decision-making.

e. A system of external moderators: This need was already identified by the UFS and the system is to be implemented as early as July 2004.

f. A compulsory research component: The UFS is required to introduce a research component which will include the development of research skills for the business environment. The UFS management identified this need and has approved such a component - it is to take effect from January 2005. This is an insufficient element lacking in virtually all MBA programmes in South Africa.

g. Support programmes for learners having problems with numeracy: The UFS identified this as a need for academic support among some learners and has already developed such a programme which will be implemented from January 2005.

The majority of these conditions have been satisfied already and few remaining steps will take effect soon. It is for this reason that the UFS is confident that its three MBA programmes will soon receive full accreditation.

2. WHAT ACCREDITATION DOES THE UFS HAVE FOR ITS MBA PROGRAMME?

The UFS’s School of Management received conditional accreditation for its three MBA programmes.

Two levels of accreditation are awarded to tertiary institutions for their MBA programmes, namely full accreditation and conditional accreditation. When a programme does not comply with the minimum requirements regarding a small number of criteria, conditional accreditation is given. This can be rectified during the short or medium term.

3. IS THERE ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE ACADEMIC CORE OF THE UFS’s MBA PROGRAMMES?

No. The UFS is proud of its three MBA programmes’ reputation in the market and the positive feedback it receives from graduandi and their employers.

The MBA programmes of the UFS meet most of the minimum requirements of the evaluation process.

In particular, the key element of ‘teaching and learning’, which relates to the curriculum and content of the MBA programmes, is beyond question. In other words, the core of what is being taught in our MBA programmes is sound.

4. IS THE UFS’s MBA A WORTHWHILE QUALIFICATION?

Yes. Earlier this year, the School of Management – young as it is - was rated by employers as the best smaller business school in South Africa. This was based on a survey conducted by the Professional Management Review and reported in the Sunday Times Business Times, of 25 January 2004.

The UFS is committed to maintaining these high standards of quality, not only through compliance with the requirements of the CHE, but also through implementing its own quality assurance measures.

Another way in which we benchmark the quality of our MBA programmes is through the partnerships we have formed with institutions such as the DePaul University in Chicago and Kansas State University, both in the US, as well as the Robert Schuman University in France.

For this reason the UFS appreciates and supports the work of the CHE and welcomes its specific findings regarding the three MBA programmes.

It is understandable that the MBA review has caused some nervousness – not least among current MBA students throughout the country.

However, one principle that the UFS management is committed to is this: preparing all our students for a world of challenge and change. Without any doubt the MBA programme of the UFS is a solid preparation.

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