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Biobanks exist today on every continental though they have evolved differently in different parts of the world. The African States have been involved in biobank research for a considerable time but for decades large volumes of data and samples have been transferred outside the continent to developed countries for their storage and eventual further use, thus affecting the capacity-building and development for researchers in Africa. Currently, there are ongoing projects to build biobank research capacity within the regions where they are at an early developmental stage and collaborate transnationally in that regard. One of them is B3Africa, an EU-funded project that aims to facilitate collaboration between selected EU Member States and the African States and enhance mutual data and sample exchange between the EU and African States. Within the project, an informatics platform, the eB3Kit, is being developed. The platform integrates available open-source software, services and tools for biobanking and bioinformatics. Further, an ethical and legal framework for collaboration is being drafted that may bridge biobank research activities in the EU Member States and the African States. This article focuses on the latter, the ethical and legal framework., B3Africa

Biobanks exist today on every continental though they have evolved differently in different parts of the world. The African States have been involved in biobank research for a considerable time but for decades large volumes of data and samples have been transferred outside the continent to developed countries for their storage and eventual further use, thus affecting the capacity-building and development for researchers in Africa. Currently, there are ongoing projects to build biobank research capacity within the regions where they are at an early developmental stage and collaborate transnationally in that regard. One of them is B3Africa, an EU-funded project that aims to facilitate collaboration between selected EU Member States and the African States and enhance mutual data and sample exchange between the EU and African States. Within the project, an informatics platform, the eB3Kit, is being developed. The platform integrates available open-source software, services and tools for biobanking and bioinformatics. Further, an ethical and legal framework for collaboration is being drafted that may bridge biobank research activities in the EU Member States and the African States. This article focuses on the latter, the ethical and legal framework., B3Africa

Biobanks exist today on every continental though they have evolved differently in different parts of the world. The African States have been involved in biobank research for a considerable time but for decades large volumes of data and samples have been transferred outside the continent to developed countries for their storage and eventual further use, thus affecting the capacity-building and development for researchers in Africa. Currently, there are ongoing projects to build biobank research capacity within the regions where they are at an early developmental stage and collaborate transnationally in that regard. One of them is B3Africa, an EU-funded project that aims to facilitate collaboration between selected EU Member States and the African States and enhance mutual data and sample exchange between the EU and African States. Within the project, an informatics platform, the eB3Kit, is being developed. The platform integrates available open-source software, services and tools for biobanking and bioinformatics. Further, an ethical and legal framework for collaboration is being drafted that may bridge biobank research activities in the EU Member States and the African States. This article focuses on the latter, the ethical and legal framework., B3Africa

Biobanks exist today on every continental though they have evolved differently in different parts of the world. The African States have been involved in biobank research for a considerable time but for decades large volumes of data and samples have been transferred outside the continent to developed countries for their storage and eventual further use, thus affecting the capacity-building and development for researchers in Africa. Currently, there are ongoing projects to build biobank research capacity within the regions where they are at an early developmental stage and collaborate transnationally in that regard. One of them is B3Africa, an EU-funded project that aims to facilitate collaboration between selected EU Member States and the African States and enhance mutual data and sample exchange between the EU and African States. Within the project, an informatics platform, the eB3Kit, is being developed. The platform integrates available open-source software, services and tools for biobanking and bioinformatics. Further, an ethical and legal framework for collaboration is being drafted that may bridge biobank research activities in the EU Member States and the African States. This article focuses on the latter, the ethical and legal framework., B3Africa

Biobanks exist today on every continental though they have evolved differently in different parts of the world. The African States have been involved in biobank research for a considerable time but for decades large volumes of data and samples have been transferred outside the continent to developed countries for their storage and eventual further use, thus affecting the capacity-building and development for researchers in Africa. Currently, there are ongoing projects to build biobank research capacity within the regions where they are at an early developmental stage and collaborate transnationally in that regard. One of them is B3Africa, an EU-funded project that aims to facilitate collaboration between selected EU Member States and the African States and enhance mutual data and sample exchange between the EU and African States. Within the project, an informatics platform, the eB3Kit, is being developed. The platform integrates available open-source software, services and tools for biobanking and bioinformatics. Further, an ethical and legal framework for collaboration is being drafted that may bridge biobank research activities in the EU Member States and the African States. This article focuses on the latter, the ethical and legal framework., B3Africa

Biobanks are an organized collection of biological material and associated data. They are a fundamental resource for life science research and contribute to the development of pharmaceutical drugs, diagnostic markers and to a deeper understanding of the genetics that regulate the development of all life on earth. Biobanks are well established in High Income Countries (HIC) and are rapidly emerging in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC). Surveys among biobanks operating in a LMIC setting indicate that limited resources and short term funding tied to specific projects threaten the sustainability of the biobanks. Fit-for-purpose biobanks targeting major societal challenges such as HIV and Malaria provide an excellent basis for integrating biobanks with the available research communities in LMIC regions. But to become sustainable for the future it is important that biobanks become an integrated part of local research communities. To achieve this, the cost of operating biobanks must be lowered, templates must be developed to support local ethics committees and researchers must be given the opportunity to build experience in successfully operating biobank based research projects. The B3Africa consortium is based on these conclusions and set up to support biobank based research by creating a cost efficient Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) for developing biobanks and also contribute to the training and capacity building in the local research community. The technical platform called the eB3Kit is open source and consists of a LIMS and a bioinformatics module based on the eBiokit that allow researchers to take control over the analysis of their own data. Along with the technical platform the consortium will also contribute training and support for the associated infrastructures necessary to regulate the ethical and legal implications of biobank based research., B3Africa

Biobanks are an organized collection of biological material and associated data. They are a fundamental resource for life science research and contribute to the development of pharmaceutical drugs, diagnostic markers and to a deeper understanding of the genetics that regulate the development of all life on earth. Biobanks are well established in High Income Countries (HIC) and are rapidly emerging in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC). Surveys among biobanks operating in a LMIC setting indicate that limited resources and short term funding tied to specific projects threaten the sustainability of the biobanks. Fit-for-purpose biobanks targeting major societal challenges such as HIV and Malaria provide an excellent basis for integrating biobanks with the available research communities in LMIC regions. But to become sustainable for the future it is important that biobanks become an integrated part of local research communities. To achieve this, the cost of operating biobanks must be lowered, templates must be developed to support local ethics committees and researchers must be given the opportunity to build experience in successfully operating biobank based research projects. The B3Africa consortium is based on these conclusions and set up to support biobank based research by creating a cost efficient Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) for developing biobanks and also contribute to the training and capacity building in the local research community. The technical platform called the eB3Kit is open source and consists of a LIMS and a bioinformatics module based on the eBiokit that allow researchers to take control over the analysis of their own data. Along with the technical platform the consortium will also contribute training and support for the associated infrastructures necessary to regulate the ethical and legal implications of biobank based research.