Global WACh

Neurodevelopment

March 4, 2026

RISE collaborators attend launch meeting in Kenya for HIV/ART exposure on child neurodevelopment research

Categories: , ,

RISE collaborators from multiple research institutes met in Nairobi, Kenya.

From February 2nd-4th, collaborators affiliated with “Researching Interventions and Implementation Strategies to Evaluate the Health and Development of Children Affected by HIV (RISE)” met in Nairobi, Kenya for its official launch meeting. It was an exciting time for collaborators to meet in-person, understand the program goals and individual responsibilities, and participate in meaningful scientific discussions. Collaborators left this short, but impactful meeting motivated, engaged, and focused.

Awarded in late 2025, RISE aims to evaluate tools for screening children for neurodevelopmental delays and to identify interventions to optimize neurodevelopment among children with and without in-utero HIV/ART exposure in Botswana, Kenya, and Zimbabwe. It includes three distinct research Projects and three Cores that provide shared resources, focusing on scientific administrative support, data management and analysis, and dissemination and stakeholder engagement, to facilitate the Projects. Investigators come from partner institutions in Kenya (University of Nairobi, Kenyatta National Hospital, UW-Kenya, Kenya Medical Research Institute), Zimbabwe (Zvitambo, Queen Mary University, London), Botswana (Botswana Harvard Partnership, Mass General Hospital), Mayo Clinic, Seattle Children’s Hospital, University of California, San Diego (UCSD), Emory University, and Indiana University. (more…)