Innovation Centre

The East Africa Biodesign (EAB) fellowship is a leading-edge initiative by UGHE, the University of Rwanda (The Regional Center of Excellence in Biomedical Engineering and e-health), and Kenyatta University in partnership with the Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign. EAB is committed to fostering need-driven innovations founded on the true understanding of unmet healthcare needs of the East African region by using the Biodesign process. This process is a systematic approach to identify unmet healthcare needs and leverage this deep appreciation to design solutions and develop business and commercialization plans to bring them to patients. 

Over 10-months, our multidisciplinary group of fellows engage in a transformative project-based learning experience, combining classroom instruction, hands-on experience, and mentorship from experts in the MedTech ecosystem. They learn to identify unmet clinical needs, conduct rigorous validation research, develop solutions and implementation strategies that promote equitable healthcare delivery. “The EAB program has taught me that listening in a team goes beyond merely pausing to talk and giving space. It involves actively thinking through with the speaker and taking the time to reflect on their words. Listening is the catalyst for effective teamwork in Biodesign.” – Maureen Valle, EAB’24 fellow, Malawi.