Thanks for sharing this, it’s not easy to be so open, but I’m sure many people can relate to what you’re feeling. What you’ve done with the Africa Phage Forum and CENPBAT already sounds like a big step forward, even if support has been hard to find.
Have you come across any smaller funders or networks (maybe outside EA) that are more open to capacity-building projects in Nigeria/West Africa? Sometimes it feels like the challenge is less about the idea and more about finding people who really get the context.
Thank you for this kind and encouraging message. You’re right—it’s not always easy to share openly. To be honest, I don’t know how a lot of people will perceive me after now. But I felt it was important to speak from where I stand. Sometimes it seems that EA defines “doing good” in a particular way, and that can make it hard to see where other forms of impact fit in.
I’ve participated in some EA mentoring programs, and I found them valuable. At the same time, they often feel like they are preparing people for a job. But what happens in the event that you already have a form of impactful job, yet your impact is limited due to some structural or resource constraints? I wonder what mentorship would look like if it focused more on helping people overcome those constraints that limit their impact, especially in contexts like mine.
On the funding side, I agree with you—smaller funders are very difficult to find. That said, the Centre for Phage Biology and Therapeutics was able to get started with initial support from Emergent Ventures and ACX grants, and that gave us some momentum. Still, building biomedical research capacity here is extremely difficult—both in terms of infrastructure and sustainable funding. Sometimes the issue isn’t the strength of the idea, but rather finding people who really understand the Nigerian and West African context and are willing to invest in it.
Even with the hurdles, I remain committed to pushing forward, and conversations like this give me hope that there’s value in sharing the journey openly.
Thanks for sharing this, it’s not easy to be so open, but I’m sure many people can relate to what you’re feeling. What you’ve done with the Africa Phage Forum and CENPBAT already sounds like a big step forward, even if support has been hard to find.
Have you come across any smaller funders or networks (maybe outside EA) that are more open to capacity-building projects in Nigeria/West Africa? Sometimes it feels like the challenge is less about the idea and more about finding people who really get the context.
Thank you for this kind and encouraging message. You’re right—it’s not always easy to share openly. To be honest, I don’t know how a lot of people will perceive me after now. But I felt it was important to speak from where I stand. Sometimes it seems that EA defines “doing good” in a particular way, and that can make it hard to see where other forms of impact fit in.
I’ve participated in some EA mentoring programs, and I found them valuable. At the same time, they often feel like they are preparing people for a job. But what happens in the event that you already have a form of impactful job, yet your impact is limited due to some structural or resource constraints? I wonder what mentorship would look like if it focused more on helping people overcome those constraints that limit their impact, especially in contexts like mine.
On the funding side, I agree with you—smaller funders are very difficult to find. That said, the Centre for Phage Biology and Therapeutics was able to get started with initial support from Emergent Ventures and ACX grants, and that gave us some momentum. Still, building biomedical research capacity here is extremely difficult—both in terms of infrastructure and sustainable funding. Sometimes the issue isn’t the strength of the idea, but rather finding people who really understand the Nigerian and West African context and are willing to invest in it.
Even with the hurdles, I remain committed to pushing forward, and conversations like this give me hope that there’s value in sharing the journey openly.