Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Officially launched in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in 2017 as a specialized technical institution of the African Union, is Africa’s first continent-wide public health agency. Africa CDC envisions a safer, healthier, integrated, and stronger Africa, where the Member States can effectively respond to outbreaks of infectious diseases and other public health threats. The agency’s mission is to strengthen Africa’s public health institutions’ capabilities to detect and respond quickly and effectively to disease outbreaks and other health burdens through an integrated network of continent-wide preparedness and response, surveillance, laboratory, and research programs.

The risk of a catastrophic biologic event has ever been increasing due to globalization, increase in travel and movement of humans and animals and increase in technology. However, this is happening at a time when African Union Member States have limited to no capacity to deal with such events as documented by the World Health Organization (WHO) Joint External Evaluation (JEE) of 2016-2019and the Global Health Security Index report of 2021. In response Africa CDC in 2019 together with African Union Member States and its partners launched the Biosafety and Biosecurity Initiative. Under this Initiative, the Africa CDC, is strengthening Biosafety and Biosecurity capacities of Member States to enable them to comply with international Regulations including International Health Regulations of 2005, Biological Weapons Convention, United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCR 1540) and the multi-country Global Health Security Agenda Action Package 3 on Prevention.

1. The Africa CDC Biosafety and Biosecurity Initiative seeks to establish an additional two (2) RCoEBB, one (1) each in the Central and Northern Africa Regions, where the RTCP-BBP will be implemented. Applicant RCoEBBs with expressed support from their host country with the pre-requisite infrastructural requirements will be considered.    

   The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the RCoEBB are attached Here.

2. The Africa CDC now invites eligible institutions/Member States to indicate their interest in hosting the RCoEBB.  Interested institutions/Member States from the Central and Northern Africa Regions should provide information demonstrating that they have the required administrative and infrastructural requirements and relevant experience to host the RCoEBB.  The shortlisting criteria are:

   1. Documented commitment by the host country government to support the RCoEBB
   2. Existence of infrastructure required to host the RCoEBB in the selected specialized area
   3. Relevant experience in implementing training and certification programs in the area of speciality selected for consideration

NOTE: Institutions/Member States can express interest in hosting all four (4) of the areas of specialty. Onsite assessments will be conducted on shortlisted institutions/Member States before final selection is made. Further information can be obtained from Zibusiso Masuku, Africa CDC Senior Biosafety and Biosecurity Technical Officer at masukuz@africacdc.org

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form following the above shortlisting criteria via the below application form on or before 3^rd of October 2025 at 17:00 Hours East Africa Time.