Background
The University of Liberia (UL)-Atlantic Center for Research and Evaluation (ACRE) Africa Center is presently located on the Main Campus of the University of Liberia on Capitol Hill in Monrovia, Liberia. The UL-PIRE AFRICA Africa Center is the first HIV/STD prevention research center to be established at the University of Liberia. The goal of the center is to conduct prevention and clinical based projects in infectious diseases (e.g., HIV/AIDS, STDs, TB, etc).
The center specializes in the following programmes and activities;
- Research methods (e.g., qualitative, quantitative, randomized trials),
- Project evaluation,
- Training and technical assistance,
- Survey development and administration,
- Behavioral-driven research (e.g., social cognitive theory, behavioral change communication),
- Data management (e.g., data collection, entry, verification, coding),
- Program development and implementation,
- Service delivery,
- Statistical analyses (e.g., frequency, regression),
- Grant and report writing, and
- Medical laboratory technology (e.g., diagnostic testing), among others.
In an effort to conduct a well-structured research environment in post-conflict Liberia, collaboration between the University of Liberia and Atlantic Center for Research & Evaluation (ACRE) was formulated in 2006 to establish the first HIV/STD and infectious diseases research center at the University of Liberia. This research center is known as UL-PIRE AFRICA Africa Center and is involved in conducting multi-disciplinary research as well as capacity building-related initiatives in Liberia.
This is of significant importance to Liberia, a country that is emerging from decades of political conflicts wherein infectious diseases, including HIV/STDs, remain a major challenge to the country’s public health system. For example, communicable disease-related policies are hindered by the lack of quality data. The health sector lacks institutional and organizational models to successfully guide communicable disease-related program development and/or implementation. Health decision making matrix lacks a multi-disciplinary focus, among others.
As we strive to promote an enabling environment to support biomedical, behavioral and/or medical research to address the historical and emerging public health issues of the country, we look forward to fostering collaborative initiatives with both local and international partners to effectively address these challenges.
Accordingly, the UL-PIRE AFRICA Africa Center extends greetings to her many partners who are, and have been, working tirelessly to generate appropriate resources in support of structured science-based research, as well as capacity building and technical assistance, in Liberia.