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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
idw - Informationsdienst
Wissenschaft
Hamburg, 11 March 2026 - A strong signal for international health research: The Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) has secured millions in funding as part of the third funding phase of the Global Health Protection Programme (GHPP) of the Federal Ministry of Health (BMG) in collaboration with international partner institutions.
At a time when international programmes and research collaborations in the field of global health are coming under political and financial pressure, the approval sends a clear signal of continuity and cooperation. The projects started at the beginning of 2026 and will run for three years. BNITM researchers are working to advance pandemic preparedness in Africa, expand the monitoring of dangerous pathogens, combat antimicrobial resistance and improve clinical care for severe infectious diseases.
Global health crises do not stop at national borders. This is precisely where the GHPP comes in: since 2016, it has been promoting strategic partnerships between German organisations and institutions in countries with a high disease burden and limited resources in the field of infectious disease research. The Hamburg Tropical Institute has been involved from the outset. Scientists at the BNITM work closely with partner institutions in Nigeria, Guinea, Benin, Sierra Leone, Ghana and Tanzania, among others, including the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH) in Nigeria and the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR) in Ghana. Together, they are expanding laboratory capacities, establishing genomic surveillance of (highly pathogenic) pathogens, further developing clinical structures and devising strategies against drug-resistant pathogens. The focus is on anchoring these structures in research and care in the long term.
With the third funding phase now approved, the BNITM will continue these collaborations with its partners and deepen them strategically. In several joint projects, researchers are further expanding stationary and mobile laboratory networks in West Africa (AfroLabNet3), developing genomic surveillance of outbreak-relevant viruses (CELESTA 2.0) and strengthening intensive care for Lassa fever and other viral haemorrhagic fevers (MEVIN 2.0). Modern sequencing technologies enable partner laboratories to genetically characterise pathogens, trace chains of transmission and contain outbreaks more quickly. Mobile laboratory units also support national authorities directly in the field, even in regions that are difficult to access. To increase the chances of survival in severe cases, the project team is expanding intensive care treatment capacities. International training courses and the establishment of a team of clinical experts at the BNITM are also improving global pandemic preparedness.
Other scientists are advancing research into antimicrobial resistance (SCOPE-AMR) and drug-resistant malaria (SMART II). Antimicrobial resistance occurs when bacteria become insensitive to antibiotics, a development that is considered one of the greatest threats to public health worldwide. The team analyses resistance patterns, examines treatment outcomes and develops evidence-based strategies for more effective patient care. In malaria research, scientists are specifically monitoring resistance to established drugs and further expanding regional networks.
The Fellowship in Outbreak Readiness for Global Health Protection (FOR-GHP) training programme is also based on long-term cooperation. It is implemented jointly with the African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET), the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) and the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). The programme specifically trains professionals to deal with health emergencies in sub-Saharan Africa. It relies on a multiplier approach: experienced experts pass on their knowledge, thereby strengthening the preparedness, responsiveness and resilience of public health structures. FOR-GHP combines digital learning formats with face-to-face training and develops its own simulation-based exercise formats. This enables participants to practise specific outbreak management and learn how to confidently implement the International Health Regulations. With the support of AFENET, the programme connects professionals throughout the region and keeps them in constant contact via an active alumni network.
‘This grant is one of the largest third-party funding commitments our institute has received in recent years,’ says Prof. Dr Jürgen May, Chairman of the BNITM. ‘It is a great recognition of the outstanding work that is being done at the institute alongside research: establishing and supporting structures for health in structurally weak regions. The fact that several of our working groups have been successful in this funding phase demonstrates the strength and international networking of our institute. Our cross-institutional teams combine excellent research with concrete impact in the partner countries.’
With the new funding phase, BNITM is further expanding its international network. This will enable it to further develop key areas of global health research, consolidate international collaborations in the long term and, together with its partner institutions, identify infection dynamics at an early stage and advance prevention and treatment strategies.
Overview of funded projects
AfroLabNet3
Project manager: Dr Meike Pahlmann, co-head of the Outbreak Preparedness and Response laboratory group
Partner institutions: Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH), Irrua, Edo State, Nigeria; Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de Cotonou, Benin; Centre d'Information de Prospective et de Conseils sur les IST/VIH/Sida, Benin; Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de Guinée (LFHVG), Matoto, Conakry, Guinea; Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de Gueckédou (LFHV-GKD), Guinea; Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de l’Hôpital Régional de N’Zérékoré (HRNZE), Guinea; Njala University, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Community Health Sciences, Sierra Leone; Federal Medical Centre (FMCO), Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria; Robert Koch Institute, Germany
Topic: Strengthening laboratory networks and mobile response capacities
Objective: Improving regional outbreak preparedness and response through sustainable infrastructure, training and a One Health approach in West Africa.
CELESTA 2.0
Project manager: Dr Sophie Duraffour, Head of Mobile Laboratory Infrastructure
Partner institutions: Centre de Recherche en Virologie, Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de Guinée (CRV-LFHVG), Conakry, Guinea; Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de Gueckédou (LFHV-GKD), Gueckédou, Guinea; Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de L’Hôpital Régional de N’Zérékoré (LFHV-HRNZE), N’Zérékoré, Guinea; Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH), Irrua, Edo State, Nigeria; Instituto Aggeu Magalhães (IAM), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil; National Institute for Research on Public Health (INSPI), Quito, Ecuador; Evolutionary Genetics Section, Faculty of Science, University of Uruguay (Udelar), Uruguay; Public Health Reference Laboratory - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (PHRL-KP), Khyber Medical University (KMU), Peshawar, Pakistan; Institute of Public Health & Social Sciences (IPH&SS), Khyber Medical University (KMU), Peshawar, Pakistan; Evolutionary and Computational Virology, KU Leuven, Belgium
Topic: Genomic surveillance of virus infections with outbreak potential
Objective: Expansion of sequencing capacities and bioinformatic tools for the early detection and characterisation of newly emerging viruses.
MEVIN 2.0
Project manager: Prof. Dr Michael Ramharter, Head of the Clinical Research Department
Partner institutions: Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH), Irrua, Edo State, Nigeria; Unité de Maladies Infectieuses, Faculté de Médecine de l'Université de Parakou, CHU Départemental de Borgou-Alibori, Parakou, Benin; Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques Virales de Gueckédou (LFHV-GKD), Gueckédou, Guinea.
Topic: Intensive care and outbreak management for Lassa fever
Objective: Expansion of intensive care treatment capacities for Lassa fever, strengthening of regional health structures in West Africa and establishment of a globally deployable clinical rapid response unit.
SCOPE-AMR
Project manager: Dr Denise Dekker, Head of the One Health Bacteriology Working Group
Partner institutions: Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR), Ghana; National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), Tanzania; HJPZ, Tanzania
Topic: Antimicrobial resistance
Objective: Monitoring resistance patterns, analysing treatment outcomes and developing patient-oriented strategies against resistant pathogens.
SMART II
Project manager: Dr Oumou Maïga-Ascofaré, postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Partner institution: Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR), Ghana
Topic: Drug-resistant malaria
Objective: To evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of current antimalarial drugs and determine the precise population-based prevalence of malaria.
FOR-GHP
Project manager: Dr Dewi Ismajani Puradiredja, Head of the Interdisciplinary Academy of Competence & Education for Global Health (iACE Global Health)
Partner institutions: African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET); Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH), Switzerland; Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany
Topic: Continuing education and training in global health care
Objective: Sustainable strengthening and networking of expertise in outbreak prevention and management.
About the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM)
The Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) is Germany's largest institution for research, care and teaching in the field of tropical and emerging infectious diseases. BNITM's research has always been focused on global health/One Health and translation – the transfer of basic research into application. This research approach is also reflected in the institute's five sections: Pathogen -> Interface (immunology, host/pathogen) -> Patient (clinic) -> Population (epidemiology) -> Implementation (successful establishment of knowledge). The Data Science Centre has just been newly established.
Current thematic priorities include malaria, haemorrhagic fever viruses, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), immunology, epidemiology and the clinic of tropical infections, as well as the mechanisms of virus transmission by mosquitoes. The institute has laboratories with the highest biological safety level (BSL4) and a safety insectarium (BSL3) for handling highly pathogenic viruses and infected insects. The BNITM's mobile laboratories are available for global outbreak control of highly pathogenic or highly infectious viruses.
The BNITM is the National Reference Centre for the detection of all tropical infectious agents, a consultation laboratory for bornaviruses, a WHO Collaborating Centre for Arboviruses and Haemorrhagic Fever Viruses, a WHO Collaborating Centre for Behavioural Research to Promote Global Health, and an institute in the Leibniz Association.
Dr Meike Pahlmann
Research Group Leader
Phone : +49 40 285380-588
Email : pahlmann@bnitm.de
Dr Sophie Duraffour
Research Group Leader
Email : duraffour@bnitm.de
Prof. Dr Michael Ramharter
Leader Clinical Research Department
Phone : +49 40 285380-267
Email : michael.ramharter@ctm.bnitm.de
Dr Denise Dekker
Research Group Leader
Phone : +49 40 285380-521
Email : dekker@bnitm.de
Dr Oumou Maïga-Ascofaré
Infectious Disease Epidemiology Department
Phone : +233 32 206 0351
Email : maiga@bnitm.de
Dr Dewi Ismajani Puradiredja
Head of iACE Academy
Phone : +49 40 285380-243
Email : puradiredja@bnitm.de
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