Can gene drive for malaria control be safely and sustainably implemented in Africa?

Public engagement tools for a participatory development of gene drive technologies in Africa.

he social science studies and preliminary stakeholders? engagement described in our main proposal will identify ethical and social considerations that may affect the adoption of gene drive technologies for public health action in Africa. The current Research-Enrichment-Public-Engagement (REPE) project will build on identified knowledge gaps to co-create gene drive governance in Africa by connecting scientists and end-users through a two-way dialogue platform. Specifically, the REPE ambitions are to: i) develop an information and exchange platform that will maximize interactions between scientists and various stakeholders to ensure co-development and ownership of gene drive technologies (GDT) by potential beneficiaries of its use, ii) build an interactive social science database on genetic vector control to guide policy, iii) improve scientists? skills to communicate their findings and aspirations with general audiences. This open-access engagement approach will help to gather relevant information to feed our main research pathway, and to provide a robust framework for the introduction of gene drive applications in Africa. Such roadmap will guide scientists, inform the public on the progress and guide policymakers to make an informed decision. The project is primarily focused in the West and Central African regions, already involved in our initial project, but the platform will be opened to potential stakeholders beyond these regions.