WAGMC Inaugurates State-of-the-Art Genomic Medicine Building

November 8, 2024

The West African Genetic Medicine Centre (WAGMC) has marked a historic moment with the official opening of its new Genomic Medicine Building at the University of Ghana, Legon on 8 November 2024. The state-of-the-art facility establishes Ghana as a leader in genomic education, research, and healthcare delivery in West Africa, ushering in a new chapter for human genomics in the region

“I see this building as a cross-cutting platform for transformative work globally through education, research and community and public engagement,” – Prof Ofori-Acquah (WAGMC Director)

The 2,600-square-meter building was constructed with support from the Government of Ghana through the World Bank’s Africa Centres of Excellence (ACE) for Development Impact initiative. The inauguration was led by the Minister for Education, Hon. Dr. Yaw Adutwum, alongside the University of Ghana’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo.

The Genomic Medicine Building houses cutting-edge resources, including a 220-square-meter laboratory, a 200-seat auditorium, a dedicated genetic counselling clinic space, smart classrooms, a biorepository, graduate workspaces, and faculty offices. These facilities will support the Centre’s rapidly expanding programmes, such as the Master’s in Genetic Counselling launched in 2022, and strengthen WAGMC’s role as a hub for innovation and training in genomic medicine.

The new building reflects WAGMC’s vision of becoming a continental leader in genomic medicine. With capacity to host international collaborations, research projects, and community outreach, the facility will enhance Africa’s ability to harness genomic science to improve health outcomes.

The opening of this building comes at a historic moment for WAGMC, coinciding with the graduation of its first cohort of genetic counsellors in 2024. Together, these milestones showcase WAGMC’s leadership in building the workforce and infrastructure needed to integrate genomics into healthcare across Africa.

African GC Association

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Tina-Marié Wessels

A/Prof Wessels is a Genetic Counsellor and the course convener of the Masters programme in Genetic Counselling at the university of Cape Town. She worked in the department of Human Genetics at the National Health Laboratory Service and the University of the Witwatersrand, first as a Genetic Counsellor and later as the course convener, before joining the Division of Human Genetics at the University of Cape Town in 2014. As a Genetic counsellor she sees patients at Groote Schuur and Red Cross Children’s Hospital. Her main role is to train Genetic Counsellors. In addition she is involved in research and teaching to undergraduate and post graduate students. She has a special interest in the communication aspects of genetic counselling, predictive testing, prenatal counselling and aspects around training of Genetic Counsellors and education in Genetics and Genomics.

Nakita is a HPCSA registered genetic counsellor, graduating from UCT with her MSc (Med) in Genetic Counselling in 2011. She is appointed as a senior genetic counsellor at Groote Schuur Hospital where she provides clinical genetic counselling services in the state sector, working in prenatal, paediatric and adult genetics. She is an honourary lecturer with the University of Cape Town (UCT) and is actively involved with the MSc in Genetic Counselling programme, playing a key leadership role in the clinical service delivery, clinical training and lecturing of genetic counselling students and interns, clinical supervision as well as research supervision. She is a collaborator on projects involved in looking at the genetic causes of cardiomyopathies in South Africa (IMHOTEP) and Cystic Fibrosis. She is the outgoing chair of the GCSA (Genetic Counsellors South Africa) and the Division of Human Genetics (UCT) transformation committee. She is a proud member of Southern African Society for Human Genetics (SASHG) and African Society of Human Genetics (AFSHG), through which she was approached to start the African Genetic Counselling Association (AGCA).

Malebo Malope

Malebo is a registered genetic counsellor and currently employed at Stellenbosch University as a lecturer. She is responsible for coordinating the teaching activities for the Clinical Genetics and Genetic Counselling Unit. Additionally, she develops and leads short courses within the unit. Malebo provides clinical genetic counselling in Tygerberg Hospital and participates clinical training to intern genetic counsellors. Malebo completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Limpopo and obtained her master’s degree in Genetic Counselling at the University of Cape Town. She has a special interest in decision-making on termination of pregnancy for foetal abnormalities, accessible genetic counselling services and diversity and inclusion within the field of genetics and genomics.

Michelle Bishop

Dr. Bishop is Associate Director, Learning and Training at Wellcome Connecting Science, where she leads a team delivering over 50 genomics education and training initiatives annually to a global professional audience. Originally from Australia, Michelle has nearly 20 years of experience in genomics education.
Since moving to the UK in 2008, she has developed nationally recognised training curricula for genomic specialists, including genetic counsellors, and led the creation of competency frameworks to support the integration of genomics across healthcare professions. She has also contributed to teaching in both clinical and academic settings.
Michelle has authored over 60 digital learning resources, published more than 25 peer-reviewed papers, and contributed to two book chapters on genomics education. She regularly advises national and international genomics programmes, bringing both educational and clinical expertise to her work. Michelle holds a PhD in genetics education and is a trained genetic counsellor.

Judith Osae-Larbi

Dr. Osae-Larbi is a licensed health psychologist registered with the Ghana Psychology Council and charted with the British Psychological Society. She has worked for over 12 years in the areas of research, teaching, and provision of psychological support solutions. She is currently a Research Fellow at the West African Genetic Medicine Centre (WAGMC), University of Ghana, where she is the Co-Director of the new MSc programme in Genetic Counselling. She is also the Founding Executive Director of Psychological Relief for Women International (PReWI) – a non-profit organisation focused on bringing psychological relief to women in distress.

Mohamed Zahir

Dr. Zahir Alimohamed is a Tanzanian molecular geneticist, genetic counselling practitioner, and biomedical scientist. He serves as a lecturer and research coordinator in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS), and is the co-founder of the Tanzania Human Genetics Organization (THGO).
He earned his PhD in Medical Genetics from the University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands, where he used next-generation sequencing to improve the diagnosis of genetic diseases such as cardiomyopathies, spinocerebellar ataxias and leukemia. His postdoctoral fellowships at MUHAS and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) focused on translational genomics, including the development of diagnostic and curative strategies for inherited disorders. Dr. Zahir’s research interests include cardiogenetics, gene editing for Sickle Cell Disease, pharmacogenomics in African populations, rare disease diagnostics, antimicrobial resistance, neurogenetics, and oncogenetics. He is one of the first practitioners of genetic counselling in Tanzania and is actively involved in building genomic medicine capacity in low-resource settings.
Dr. Zahir’s research interests include cardiogenetics, gene editing for Sickle Cell Disease, pharmacogenomics in African populations, rare disease diagnostics, antimicrobial resistance, neurogenetics, and oncogenetics. He is one of the first practitioners of genetic counselling in Tanzania and is actively involved in building genomic medicine capacity in low-resource settings.

Katryn Fourie

Katryn is the Genetic Counselling Manager at the National Health Laboratory Service and a lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand, where she also coordinates the MSc (Med) Genetic Counselling programme. She has been practicing as a genetic counsellor since 2017, with a particular interest in prenatal genetics.
Katryn is actively involved in teaching, curriculum development, and postgraduate supervision. She plays a key leadership role in managing a team of genetic counsellors and interns, with a focus on service delivery, training, and professional development. She serves on several national committees, including the Genetic Counsellors in South Africa (GCSA), the HPCSA CMS, and the Wits Human Research Ethics Committee. Katryn is also a member of the Southern African Society for Human Genetics (SASHG) and a proud contributor to the African Genetic Counselling Association.

Kalinka Tavares

Kalinka is a registered genetic counsellor. She obtained an MSc (Med) Genetic Counselling degree in 2017 at the University of Cape Town. She has assisted with project coordination on a project for hereditary hearing loss in Africa for the past 6 years. She has also assisted with some aspects of the teaching on the MSc Genetic Counselling course and occasional courses at the University of Cape Town. Since 2022 she has been appointed as the genetic counsellor at the West African Genetic Medicine Centre at the University of Ghana, where she is tasked to provide the practical training and lecturing on the first Genetic Counselling degree in West Africa