Rwanda Aims for Regional Health Leadership with TRIBE-HUB Project Kickoff

4 months ago Kanamugire Emmanuel

Prof. Claude Mambo Muvunyi, Director General of RBC, during his opening remarks

The Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC), in partnership with the European Union and Team Europe, has launched the TRIBE-HUB Project, a major initiative aimed at advancing RBC’s role as a Regional Centre of Excellence in public health across Africa.

The TRIBE-HUB (Transforming Rwanda’s Biomedical Centre into Excellence Hub for National and Regional Public Health) Project aims to enhance RBC’s institutional capacity in key areas including public health research, workforce development, digital health, and disease surveillance.

It will contribute to the development of public health services in Rwanda and across the African continent by strengthening national public health functions in disease surveillance, epidemic preparedness, and outbreak response. The project will promote peer-to-peer technical assistance, training, and knowledge exchange.

In January 31st 2025, RBC was officially designated by Africa CDC as a Regional Centre of Excellence, under the Africa CDC Regional NPHIs capacity strengthening. In this context, RBC is also expected to contribute to technical assistance, mentorship, and training to its peers across the region.

Other countries that will be supported though this project include Burundi, Thad, DRC, Malawi, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Guinea Bisau, and Guinea Conakry.

This project is a critical investment to operationalize that mandate, equipping RBC with the tools, systems, and expertise it needs to deliver on this continental responsibility.

Prof. Claude Mambo Muvunyi, Director General of RBC welcomed the project as a timely and strategic opportunity to advance public health capacity in Rwanda and the region.

“The TRIBE-HUB Project comes at the right time. It will help reinforce RBC’s position as a Centre of Excellence in research, policy, and public health capacity development. Over the next three years, it will support our mission to improve population health, contribute to the implementation of Rwanda’s Health Sector Strategic Plan (HSSP V), and enable us to extend technical support to public health institutes across the region.”

Maria Christiansen, Seconded National Expert Programme Officer-Health at the EU Delegation to Rwanda, said the initiative will position RBC as a national and regional hub for public health excellence and a model for innovation, resilience, and data-driven policy.

“TRIBE-HUB is part of the Team Europe initiative on National Public Health Institutes dedicated to strengthen health systems, pandemic preparedness and digital transformation. It complements other key Team Europe initiatives on One Health and digital health”, she said.

She explained that Rwanda was picked based on the fact that it is prepared, visionary, committed and the country’s health system has demonstrated the power of evidence-based multisectoral coordination, whether in its rapid and effective COVID-19 response, MPOX containment strategy or its low mortality rates during the recent Marbourg outbreak.

**Maria Christiansen, Seconded National Expert Programme Officer-Health** **at EU Delegation to Rwanda**

The project is implemented by RBC, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MOH) and University of Rwanda (UR-CMHS) from July 2025 to June 2028 with the budget of €4.200 000.

Prof. Didace Kayihura, Vice Chancellor of University of Rwanda, said “This project aligns closely with the University of Rwanda’s mission and vision, particularly our commitment to advancing high quality education, relevant and impactful research, capacity building for national development and mainly the evidence-based policy engagement”.

“It will enable the University of Rwanda, especially through the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, to reinforce its curriculum in line with the existing gaps in the public health workforce. It will again reinforce our vision to be a leading university that produces highly skilled and socially responsible graduates who are prepared and committed to building a more just, inclusive and sustainable society, both locally and globally.”

The project represents a strategic step toward achieving universal health coverage and improving the health outcomes of populations. By empowering RBC with the necessary tools, skills, and knowledge, TRIBE-HUB will help deliver on Africa’s vision of sustainable health systems.