Advanced Molecular course
The phase II of the MoBioLab project involves the six universities that participated in phase I: Kenyatta and Moi University in Kenya, Haramaya and Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia, Muni and Makerere University in Uganda.
The training includes a two-day crash course on Active Learning and a five-day hands-on training on Molecular Cloning. Active learning is a teaching approach based on the active involvement of students during the in-person sessions, which stimulates engagement and knowledge transfer. It aids the creation of a safe learning space and fosters cohesion in the trainees group. The trainees spend the remaining five days at the laboratory bench, where they learn how to design a molecular cloning experiment using open-access software. They learn how to execute molecular biology experiments and gain confindence in handling the laboratory equipment. Finally, they experience how to interprent their results and how to troubleshoot to solve technical difficulties.
IPBO developed a manual for this course that includes easily explained theory sections on molecular cloning and detailed protocols on how to execute the experiments using open-access material. The manual is meant to aid the trainees in transferring what they have learned to their fellows, in respect of the 'train-the-trainers' concept. Our tarinees become trainers during the course roll-outs that are organized by the partners universities, in which additional students and personnel of the university will be trained in advanced molecular biology.
Our journey began in Nairobi, Kenya, in November 2024, where 16 lecturers, PhD candidates, MSc students, and lab technicians honed their skills in advanced molecular biology techniques.
Building on this momentum, we moved to the Centre of Biotechnology at Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia, in February 2025, training a cohort of 18 participants from both Haramaya and Addis Ababa Universities.
The next stop on our tour will take us to Makerere University in Uganda in October 2025.