In this episode, Yakubu speaks with Dr Wale Salami about transforming clinical trials to better serve African communities. Together, they unpack the persistent gaps between how trials are designed and the diverse genetic, cultural, and social realities across the continent.

Dr Salami shares why meaningful change requires intentional involvement of African scientists and communities from the earliest stages of research—not just at implementation. He highlights the importance of local leadership, sustained capacity building, and stronger government support to ensure clinical trials are relevant, trusted, and impactful.

This conversation is a powerful call to action to rethink how clinical research is designed and led, with equity, ownership, and context at its core.

About the series, ‘Ubuntu Reflections: Unpacking the everyday dynamics of building equitable partnerships’

Equitable research partnerships are central to advancing academic global health, particularly to break the power hierarchies, strengthening local capacities and engaging communities in a meaningful manner. However, very little is known about the practical experiences and challenges of navigating and implementing the recommendations provided in the literature (in the form of dos and don’ts) in everyday engagement towards building and strengthening global health partnerships. 

In this series, we attempt to extend the conversation through discussing practical experiences, examples and learnings from experts based in different regions, and unpack these less talked about layers of building equitable partnerships on an everyday basis, what does it entail, the challenges encountered, and tools used to navigate these challenges. 

This series builds on our existing work at the Ubuntu Initiative