U2RTW012122
Cooperative Agreement
Overview
Grant Description
Research Training in Data Science for Health in Rwanda - Project Summary/Abstract
U2R Research Training Program (RTP) grant application for DS-I Africa Initiative (RFA-RM-20-016) is a partnership of 3 collaborating institutions: Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL), University of Rwanda (UR), and African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), both in Kigali, Rwanda.
The overarching objective of U2R RTP is to stimulate and catalyze innovation of data science (DS) for health in Rwanda. A high prevalence of communicable diseases, coupled with a rapidly expanding epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDS), forecasts a perfect public health storm in Rwanda, providing impetus and rationale to leverage DS to address healthcare gaps.
A structured program design will help develop trainee research careers in DS with a particular focus on healthcare topics relevant to Rwanda, including communicable (i.e., HIV, Malaria, COVID-19, etc.) and chronic NCDS (i.e., hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, etc.).
We propose to expand the existing model curriculum for innovative and interdisciplinary DS for health research training and practice by identifying additional competencies in three major scientific areas: 1) Computer Science & Informatics; 2) Statistics & Mathematics; and 3) Biomedical Sciences & Public Health.
U2R RTP will:
A) Provide support (tuition, stipend, research funds) for 24 trainees: MS (n=14), PhD (n=6); Post-doc (n=2); Junior Faculty (n=2); each trainee receives training for 1-2 years based on individual needs;
B) Foster an innovative team science transdisciplinary approach to research; and
C) Build institutional capacity at UR and AIMS to support the long-term sustainability of the program.
The intended outcomes are to:
1) Train the next generation of data scientists that will have the necessary expertise to solve challenging problems presented by the burden of communicable and chronic NCDS in Rwanda; and
2) Complete a full U2R program leadership and faculty and institutional transition from US-Rwanda co-led to fully Rwandan-led by the end of the U2R program.
Trainees will participate in mandatory week-long "boot camps" (twice/year), monthly webinars, and mid-year meetings with didactic training focused on career advice, research, and academic advancement in highly-relevant data science and healthcare topics (i.e., data management, bioinformatics, statistics, epidemiology, communicable diseases, NCDS, environmental exposure, dissemination and implementation, etc.).
Intense grant and manuscript writing skills training program geared towards the development of competitive grant proposals ("Small Research Projects, SRP") that trainees prepare, submit, and conduct under the direction of a multidisciplinary mentoring team from academic and governmental institutions.
Effective mentoring during boot camp occurs through trainee "group brainstorming sessions" where they present their developing SRPs to obtain feedback. An extensive program evaluation by trainees and faculty will also provide feedback for improvement.
The U2R RTP will establish and cultivate a sustainable program for training, research, mentoring, and career development that will position UR and AIMS as national and regional African leaders and a global hub for data science for health in Rwanda.
U2R Research Training Program (RTP) grant application for DS-I Africa Initiative (RFA-RM-20-016) is a partnership of 3 collaborating institutions: Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL), University of Rwanda (UR), and African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), both in Kigali, Rwanda.
The overarching objective of U2R RTP is to stimulate and catalyze innovation of data science (DS) for health in Rwanda. A high prevalence of communicable diseases, coupled with a rapidly expanding epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDS), forecasts a perfect public health storm in Rwanda, providing impetus and rationale to leverage DS to address healthcare gaps.
A structured program design will help develop trainee research careers in DS with a particular focus on healthcare topics relevant to Rwanda, including communicable (i.e., HIV, Malaria, COVID-19, etc.) and chronic NCDS (i.e., hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, etc.).
We propose to expand the existing model curriculum for innovative and interdisciplinary DS for health research training and practice by identifying additional competencies in three major scientific areas: 1) Computer Science & Informatics; 2) Statistics & Mathematics; and 3) Biomedical Sciences & Public Health.
U2R RTP will:
A) Provide support (tuition, stipend, research funds) for 24 trainees: MS (n=14), PhD (n=6); Post-doc (n=2); Junior Faculty (n=2); each trainee receives training for 1-2 years based on individual needs;
B) Foster an innovative team science transdisciplinary approach to research; and
C) Build institutional capacity at UR and AIMS to support the long-term sustainability of the program.
The intended outcomes are to:
1) Train the next generation of data scientists that will have the necessary expertise to solve challenging problems presented by the burden of communicable and chronic NCDS in Rwanda; and
2) Complete a full U2R program leadership and faculty and institutional transition from US-Rwanda co-led to fully Rwandan-led by the end of the U2R program.
Trainees will participate in mandatory week-long "boot camps" (twice/year), monthly webinars, and mid-year meetings with didactic training focused on career advice, research, and academic advancement in highly-relevant data science and healthcare topics (i.e., data management, bioinformatics, statistics, epidemiology, communicable diseases, NCDS, environmental exposure, dissemination and implementation, etc.).
Intense grant and manuscript writing skills training program geared towards the development of competitive grant proposals ("Small Research Projects, SRP") that trainees prepare, submit, and conduct under the direction of a multidisciplinary mentoring team from academic and governmental institutions.
Effective mentoring during boot camp occurs through trainee "group brainstorming sessions" where they present their developing SRPs to obtain feedback. An extensive program evaluation by trainees and faculty will also provide feedback for improvement.
The U2R RTP will establish and cultivate a sustainable program for training, research, mentoring, and career development that will position UR and AIMS as national and regional African leaders and a global hub for data science for health in Rwanda.
Awardee
Funding Goals
NOT APPLICABLE
Grant Program (CFDA)
Awarding Agency
Place of Performance
Rwanda
Geographic Scope
Foreign
Related Opportunity
Analysis Notes
Amendment Since initial award the total obligations have increased 174999700% from $1 to $1,749,998.
University Of Rwanda was awarded
Research Training in Data Science for Health in Rwanda
Cooperative Agreement U2RTW012122
worth $1,749,998
from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in September 2021 with work to be completed primarily in Rwanda.
The grant
has a duration of 4 years 10 months and
was awarded through assistance program 93.310 Trans-NIH Research Support.
The Cooperative Agreement was awarded through grant opportunity Change of Recipient Organization (Type 7 Parent Clinical Trial Optional).
Status
(Ongoing)
Last Modified 9/26/25
Period of Performance
9/22/21
Start Date
7/31/26
End Date
Funding Split
$1.7M
Federal Obligation
$0.0
Non-Federal Obligation
$1.7M
Total Obligated
Activity Timeline
Subgrant Awards
Disclosed subgrants for U2RTW012122
Transaction History
Modifications to U2RTW012122
Additional Detail
Award ID FAIN
U2RTW012122
SAI Number
U2RTW012122-3762158115
Award ID URI
SAI UNAVAILABLE
Awardee Classifications
Public/State Controlled Institution Of Higher Education
Awarding Office
75NF00 NIH Fogarty International Center
Funding Office
75NA00 NIH OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR
Awardee UEI
LL4QMJK6ZAH5
Awardee CAGE
SPL01
Performance District
Not Applicable
Budget Funding
| Federal Account | Budget Subfunction | Object Class | Total | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Office of the Director, National Institutes of Health, Health and Human Services (075-0846) | Health research and training | Grants, subsidies, and contributions (41.0) | $499,997 | 71% |
| National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Health and Human Services (075-0807) | Health research and training | Grants, subsidies, and contributions (41.0) | $200,000 | 29% |
Modified: 9/26/25