Research
Through a growing network of Group Leaders and affiliated research sites across Africa, ABI supports bioinformatics research that is grounded in African biological data and responsive to the continent’s most pressing health, agricultural, and environmental challenges. Our ambition is to produce science that is both locally relevant and globally significant.
Meet Our Group Leaders
Researchers and scientists leading bioinformatics innovation across Africa, in health, agriculture, environment, and beyond.
Professor Muzamil Mahdi Abdelhamid
Institute of Endemic Diseases, University of Khartoum, Sudan
Professor of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology
Malaria and vector-borne disease research, focused on parasite genetics, drug resistance, and diagnostic accuracy.
Dr. Peter Chinedu Agu
Evangel University, Nigeria
Lecturer in Biochemistry
Computational drug discovery using natural products to address metabolic disease, toxicity, and antimicrobial resistance.
Professor Ahmed Mansour Alzohairy
Zagazig University, Egypt
Professor of Bioinformatics
Agricultural bioinformatics, applying genomics to crop and plant pathogen research to support food security.
Dr. Eman Badr
Zewail City of Science, Technology, and Innovation, Egypt
Associate Professor of Biomedical Sciences
AI-driven multi-omics research on cancer, infectious disease, and precision medicine.
Dr. Hocine Bendou
University of Cape Town, South Africa
Lecturer in Bioinformatics
AI-driven cancer genomics and precision medicine research, with a focus on African and underrepresented populations.
Professor Alia Benkahla
Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunisia
Full Professor, Bioinformatics Team Lead
Multi-omics and AI-driven research on public health, with a One Health focus spanning human, animal, and plant health.
Assistant Professor Palwendé Romuald Boua
Clinical Research Unit of Nanoro (CRUN)/IRSS, Burkina Faso
Lead Human Genetic Epidemiologist
Genetic epidemiology and GWAS research on cardiometabolic disease and cancer in African populations.
Associate Professor Cheickna Cisse
University of Science, Techniques and Technologies of Bamako (USTTB), Mali
Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Bioinformatics
Structural bioinformatics research on infectious disease and antimicrobial resistance, using African biodiversity for drug discovery.
Associate Professor Ananyo Choudhury
SBIMB, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Reader in Bioinformatics
Precision medicine research using large-scale genomics to study African genetic diversity, cardiovascular disease, and infertility.
Dr. Mahmoud ElHefnawi
National Research Centre, Egypt
Professor & Head, Informatics and Systems Department
Computational drug discovery and gene therapy research spanning cancer, infectious disease, and AI in biomedicine.
Associate Professor Faisal Fadlelmola
Kush Centre for Genomics and Biomedical Informatics, Sudan
Professor of Health Genomics and Bioinformatics
Cancer and infectious disease genomics research, with a focus on precision medicine and open science infrastructure in Africa.
Associate Professor Mohamed Hamed
German University in Cairo (GUC), Egypt
Associate Professor of Biomedical Informatics and Computational Biology
AI-driven multi-omics and single-cell research supporting precision medicine and drug discovery.
Professor Segun Fatumo
Queen Mary University of London & MRC Uganda
Chair of Genomic Diversity
Genomic research on non-communicable disease in African populations, focused on chronic kidney disease and cardiometabolic traits.
Associate Professor Kais Ghedira
Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunisia
Head, Bioinformatics, Biomathematics and Biostatistics Lab
Multi-omics and functional genomics research on infectious disease and precision medicine, with a One Health focus.
Dr. Andreas Gisel
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Nigeria
Bioinformatician
Genomics and gene discovery research in African staple crops, focused on breeding, gene regulation, and disease resistance.
Associate Professor Yosr Haffani
Higher Institute of Biotechnology Sidi Thabet, University of Manouba, Tunisia
Associate Professor and Research Team Leader
Multi-omics and AI-driven cancer research, focused on precision oncology and cancer risk in Tunisian populations.
Associate Professor Yosr Hamdi
Institut Pasteur Tunis, Tunisia
Head, Research Department, National Human Genomics Laboratory
Cancer genomics and precision medicine research, leading efforts to implement genomic medicine across North Africa.
Dr. Emna Harigua
Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunisia
Assistant Professor
AI-driven drug discovery research for neglected tropical diseases, with a focus on leishmaniasis.
Professor Scott Hazelhurst
University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Professor of Bioinformatics
Genomics and microbiome research on population health in Africa, with a focus on cardiovascular disease and ageing.
Dr. Rajiha Abubekar Ibrahim
Ethiopian Public Health Institute, Ethiopia
Public Health Researcher and Bioinformatics Professional
Pathogen genomics research supporting outbreak investigation, antimicrobial resistance, and public health surveillance in Ethiopia.
Dr. Daudi Jjingo
Makerere University, Uganda
Senior Lecturer & Director, African Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Data-Intensive Sciences
Genomics and AI research spanning human genomics, cancer, and antimicrobial resistance.
Dr. Oussema Khamessi
ISBST Higher Institute of Biotechnology of Sidi Thabet, Manouba University, Tunisia
Assistant Professor of Bioinformatics
AI-driven structural bioinformatics research for drug discovery, spanning cancer, neurodegenerative, and mental health conditions.
Associate Professor Benson Kidenya
Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences (CUHAS), Tanzania
Associate Professor, Medical Doctor and Epidemiologist
Pathogen and human genomics research on antimicrobial resistance and prostate cancer in African populations.
Dr. Nzungize Lambert
University of Rwanda, Rwanda
Molecular & Genomic Epidemiologist
Bioinformatics-driven research on malaria and mosquito-borne disease, with a focus on insecticide resistance and vector genomics.
Professor Zané Lombard
University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Research Professor, Roche Research Chair for Precision Medicine and Genomics in Africa
Genomics research on rare paediatric developmental disorders, with a focus on capacity building and ethical research practice.
Dr. Abel Abera Negash
Armauer Hansen Research Institute, Ethiopia
Senior Researcher & Head, Division of Genomics and Bioinformatics
Genomics research on antimicrobial resistance and pathogen evolution, with a focus on diagnostics and phage therapy.
Dr. Melissa Nel
University of Cape Town, South Africa
Director, Clinical Omics and Informatics Unit
Genomics research on ALS and inherited neuromuscular disorders, using long-read sequencing to close the diagnostic gap for African patients.
Dr. Oscar Nyangiri
Kisii University, Kenya
Lecturer in Human Molecular Genetics and Bioinformatics
Genomics research on infectious disease, antimicrobial resistance, and cancer risk in African populations.
Professor Jelili Oyelade
Covenant University, Nigeria
Professor of Computational Biology and Bioinformatics
Machine learning research on genetic variation and disease risk prediction in African populations.
Professor Oleg Reva
University of Pretoria, South Africa
Professor of Bioinformatics
Bacterial genomics and machine learning research on pathogen surveillance, AMR, and agricultural microbiomes.
Dr. Caroline Ross
University of Cape Town, South Africa
Computational and Experimental Biologist
Systems biology research on gene regulation, focused on noncoding RNAs in neurodevelopmental disorders and host-pathogen interactions.
Mr. Trushar Shah
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Kenya
Bioinformatician
Applied crop genomics research using AI and genome editing to support breeding for drought, pest, and disease resistance.
Dr. Musalula Sinkala
University of Cape Town, South Africa
Lecturer and Computational Biologist
Multi-omics and AI research on cancer and cardiovascular genetics, with a focus on ancestry-aware precision medicine.
Dr. Oussama Souiai
Institut Pasteur de Tunis, Tunisia
Bioinformatician, BIMS Laboratory
Genomics and metagenomics research on zoonotic and infectious disease surveillance using next-generation sequencing.
Professor Atsbeha Weldemariam
Ethiopian Public Health Institute, Ethiopia
Founder & Lead, Pathogen Genomics and Bioinformatics Facility
Genomic surveillance research on infectious disease and antimicrobial resistance, with a One Health approach.
Peter van Heusden
SANBI, University of the Western Cape, South Africa
Researcher, Pathogen Genomics
Research on pathogen genomic epidemiology and sustainable bioinformatics infrastructure, with a focus on M. tuberculosis and public health workflows.
Professor Nicki Tiffin
SANBI, University of the Western Cape, South Africa
Professor, Bioinformatics and Health Data Science
Research on multimorbidity in African populations, integrating genomic and health data with a focus on ethics and data governance.
Tools & Resources
ABI supports the development and visibility of African-led data resources, bioinformatics tools, and analytical services. Ensuring that African scientists have access to the infrastructure and resources they need to conduct world-class research.
Areas of Focus
African genomic and biological data resources
Bioinformatics pipelines and analytical tools
Infrastructure to support pandemic preparedness and One Health approaches
Data governance and sovereignty frameworks