Alhaji N'jai poses for a picture

Alhaji U. N’jai, PhD

Senior Scientist & Associate Professor at the University of Sierra Leone
Founder & Chief Strategist, Project 1808, Inc

Profile

I am a senior biomedical scientist, senior lecturer, and researcher in the Departments of Biological Sciences, Fourah Bay College and Departments of Microbiology, College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences at the University of Sierra Leone.  I am also the Founder and Chief Strategist of Project 1808, Inc, a US 501(c3) non-profit and Sierra Leone community base organization. I am a technical leader, thought leader, and scholar with broad research interests at the intersection of biomedical science (infectious disease, toxicology, immunology, genomics, systems biology), environmental science, One health, climate change, geography, African history, anthropology, indigenous African Knowledgebase systems, and sustainability. I uniquely combine the power of mind (technical mastery), power of people, and power of agility to drive big ideas and innovation from industry to academia and community.

At University of Sierra Leone, I teach immunology, microbiology, environmental science, epidemiology, toxicology, and research methods to under graduates, medical and graduate students. Apart from teaching, I supervise and mentor undergrad, graduate, and postdoctoral research locally in Sierra Leone. I also lead international research, collaborations, and mentoring as a Principal Investigator (PI) or Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) on various projects.  Since December 2014, I have led as a Co-PI Ebola control, epidemiological surveillance, and Action Against Infectious Diseases Emerging in Africa (A-IDEA) initiative in Sierra Leone that has resulted in:

I have also taught and led UW-Madison Global Health Institute (GHI) field course to Sierra Leone between 2012 to 2014, that played a major role in building global health competencies for students from the US and Sierra Leone (https://ghi.wisc.edu/tackling-ebola-on-many-fronts/). In 2019, together with UW-Madison Molecular and Environmental Toxicology Center (METC) Toxicology graduate students designed a unique African centered toxicology course for students at University of Sierra Leone (https://madison.com/news/local/education/university/african-university-gets-course-on-pollution-problems-with-help-of-uw-grad-team/article_abeb47d6-ae72-5736-9cd1-f732952bb42c.html)

I am currently a senior technical advisor with the directorate of health securities and emergencies (DHSE) at Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) and a Co-PI for Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) Grand Challenges grant for strengthening surveillance and public health in Sierra Leone. In this regard, my work in partnership with MoHS is focused on, 1) building a system for tracking and reporting of mortalities in country, 2) system interoperability, 3) Acute Febrile Illness (AFI) surveillance for diagnosis of fevers of unknown origin, and 4) Acute Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (AVHF) surveillance for routine community seroprevalence studies to determine exposures and immunity(https://www.thepatrioticvanguard.com/sierra-leone-ministry-of-health-re…).  I am a PI for the Carnegie Mellon University-Africa (CMU Africa) inclusive digital transformation grant to leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) and additive manufacturing to improve access to quality prosthetics and orthotics for amputees. I also PI and lead the UW-Madison Global Health Institute (GHI) Africa One Health Center that is expected to launch in April of 2023. I am also a Co-PI for a new Japan $2 billion government initiative to prep pandemic vaccines in 100 days (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-03000-3)

Nationally, I chair the One Health Technical Working Group (TWG) Committee, bringing together technical persons from Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of the Environment, Ministry of Health and Sanitation, and the University (https://www.ayvnewspaper.com/ayv-news/sierra-leone-commemorates-interna…).  Sierra Leone has adopted the National One Health Platform in 2018 to enhance coordination and collaboration in preparedness and response to public health threats. I am the Managing Editor of the Sierra Leone Journal of Biomedical Research (SLJBR) (https://salonemessengers.com/dr-alhaji-njai-appointed-managing-editor-of-the-sierra-leone-journal-of-biomedical-research-sljbr/), the only peer reviewed biomedical and public health journal (https://www.sljbr.org/index.php/sjbmr/index) in Sierra Leone indexed with African Journal Online (AJOL). I am also a member of the Sierra Leone Ethics and Scientific Research Committee (SLESRC) at the MoHS that is the national IRB and provide ethical clearance for all human subject studies conducted in Sierra Leone. I am a member of the college of experts at Africa Research Excellence Fund (AREF) reviewing research proposals for fellowships and mentoring postdocs from across Africa (https://www.africaresearchexcellencefund.org.uk/). I also serve as a postdoc mentor for International Network of Government Science Advice (INGSA)- Science Advice Skills Development Program (SASDP)(https://ingsa.org/chapters/ingsa-africa/activities/sasdp/)/(https://ingsa.org/).

As Founder and Chief Strategist of Project 1808, Inc. (http://www.project1808.org), a Madison Wisconsin based US Federal 501 (c3) non-profit organization and Sierra Leone Community based organization, I have been able to successfully build a wide moat of programs around health, environment, entrepreneurship, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and Leadership, and the arts from our three fundamental pillars of education, community, and opportunities. From an initial 56 students in 2011, Project 1808, Inc. has now supported and trained over 700 students drawn from various primary and secondary schools in Koinadugu District. The School-Community-University Partnership Models developed for Project 1808 has resulted high success rates for students through the life cycle from primary to secondary school and university. Other highlights of programs include training and capacitating over 100 Ebola survivors in computers, tailoring, catering, and driving. Through disruptive innovation, diversity of ideas, leadership, volunteer support, and community empowerment, Project 1808 has been able to create impactful, meaningful, and sustainable programs for thriving communities in Sierra Leone. The three-day Science (#STEEEAM -Science Technology Engineering Environment Entrepreneurship Arts Mathematics) and Leadership festival (#SciLeadFest) organized by Project 1808 is now a national event in Sierra Leone. Annually, the SciLead has focused on small pointed and targeted activities that build #STEEEAM and leadership capacity among students, youths, and adults in the community:

Along with Project 1808, Inc. and partners, I am working on developing Koinadugu College, a model One Health focused college in Koinadugu District, Sierra Leone.  The college scheduled to officially launch this fall 2023 will be the first higher institution of learning in Koinadugu District.  Koinadugu College will uniquely offer integrated, skills training sessions at the certificate, diploma, and degree levels in the following core areas: Agriculture, Health, Environment, and Science and Engineering. An education at Koinadugu College would have a special emphasis in these core educational areas that align with our values of: Entrepreneurship, Global-mindedness, Leadership, Indigenous knowledge systems, and Sustainability. The nexus of practical, experiential, community-level skills training, and academics offered through Koinadugu College we envision will serve as an economic engine for the districts, change the face of the districts, foster creativity and innovation, nurture local talents and attract others globally, build national and international connections, address societal challenges, and ultimately improve lives. (https://isthmus.com/news/news/wisconsin-idea-reached-one-of-the-poorest-regions-in-sierra-leone/)

Finally, I am a trusted radio, TV, and newspaper social and political commentator and analyst on the issues affecting Sierra Leone and Africa. I write opinion pieces for local and international news media on issues ranging from social, environmental, health, and political economy of Sierra Leone and Africa. I am also regularly interviewed on local and international news media. From Ebola outbreak, August 2017 landslides to elections in Sierra Leone and Covid-19 pandemic, I have used my voice and news personality to educate, social mobilization, and bring hope to communities.  Some excerpts below: