Ramadhani Juma Makasali graduated from Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) in 2017 with a Bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology and Laboratory Sciences. His bachelor’s thesis focused on ‘Assessing the Genomic Stability of Viral RNA Stored on Different Types of Filter Papers.’ After completing his undergraduate studies, he joined the research group of Prof. Christopher Kasanga of SUA, as an intern laboratory scientist where he spent two years researching full-genome sequencing to identify determinants that impact Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus strains with potential for enhanced transmission in endemic settings in Africa. In 2020, Mr. Makasali joined the Department of Microbiology, Parasitology, and Biotechnology as a Tutorial Assistant in the discipline of Molecular Biology. The following year, he was awarded the Universitas scholarship programme of Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) to study master’s degree in Molecular Biology, also known as the Interuniversity Programme in Molecular Biology (IPMB). At VUB, he had the privileged opportunity of working with the μFlow Group led by Prof. Wim De Malsche, where he was actively involved in developing a new Point-of-care (POC) device to identify and quantify Soil-transmitted helminths (STHs). His master’s thesis, titled ‘Strategies to Maximize Parasite Recovery in Lab-on-a-disk Operation for Single Image Quantification.’ He graduated his master’s degree in July 2023. The IPMB is a collaborative programme offered by three universities in Belgium, namely VUB, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, and Universiteit Antwerpen. Being a collaborative programme allowed Mr. Makasali to gain a comprehensive understanding of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology skills, with a particular focus on global health.
