FT.COM/MAGAZINEMARCH 7/82020 19
mankind?”Happisays he effectively askedEne-
Obong in arecent H3Africateleconference. He
says he’s fine with the private sector engaging
transparently, but wasn’t satisfiedwith what he
sayswereEne-Obong’s vagueanswers.
54gene’s ethicschief,AminuYakubu,servedas
chairofH3Africa’sethicscommitteebeforejoining
the companylast year in September.Hetells me
54gene’s ethicalframework alignsbroadlywith
H3Africa’s,thoughit is evolving. Roughly5to
percent of the profits from its research contracts
with companieswill go to afoundationin each
countryit operatesin. Committees of eminent
scientistsand societalleaderswill decide where
themoneygoes.
Yakubu notesthat the ethicsof compensation
arecomplicated. Would mentioning the prospect
ofcompensationfromahypotheticalbillion-dollar
drug in aconsentform improperlyinducesome-
oneliving on $2 aday into participating?Should
anybenefits go onlytothose who participatedin
thestudyortheirentirecommunity?Theirethnic
group?Their country?Still, if asingle person’s
genesareusedtocreateadrugsometimedownthe
line, Yakubu says the company would wantthat
persontogetaportionoftheprofits.
Ene-Obong tells me he’d noticedsomething
among“oldacademics,researchers”doinggenet-
ics in Africa.“Theysee us moving fast and they
seeusbeing successful and theyare threatened
because, youknow, suddenlythe light is leaving
themandcomingtowardsus.”
Still, he says that he wantsto work with aca-
demia.He alreadyhas collaborationswith
researchersand institutionsin Nigeria,includ-
ingsomeaffiliatedwithH3Africa.Thisisessential
to 54gene’s work and he wantsto do more. “The
peoplewhowillsufferif[such]tensionscontinue
areAfrican,becausethetwosideswillbefocused
oneachotherandpeoplewon’tbegettingtheben-
efits of either,” he says.“In other countries, you
have asituation where private [companies] and
academicscome together to partner... [but] Ican
understandwhythereiscontentioninAfrica–we
arethefirstprivateentitydoingthis.”
WithH3Africa’sfundingrunningout,suchcol-
laborationwill become increasinglyimportant.
Whatever happens,genomicresearch in Africa
must continue, says Rotimi. “For the first time in
humanhistory, we nowhavethe necessary tools
in termsof biotechnology, computationalinfra-
structureand the scientificunderstandingof how
tointerrogatehumangenomes...andweknowthat
Africaisthehomeofhumanity,” hesays.
Rotimi is the godfatherof Africangenomics
research,widely creditedwithpushingthenotion
that we shouldstudythe continent’spopulations.
Bringingin moreAfrican scientistsand studying
Africangenomesis,hesays,bothascientificimper-
ativeandamatterofsocialjustice.
“Thescientificimperativeisthattherearethings
in the humangenomethat we cannotstudyany-
whereelsebut on theAfricancontinent,because
of the evolutionary historyof humanity,” he says.
“The social justiceissue is that if we don’t engage
this part of the world, then whatevergains we’re
goingtogetfromusinggenomicstoimprovehealth
oragricultureoreventheeconomy,thatpartofthe
world is going to be left behind, just likealot of
otherrevolutionspassedoverAfrica.”NeilMunshiistheFT’sWestAfricacorrespondent’Wewanttobeabletobuildvalue,
andthatvaluecouldbedrugsthat
treatpeopleacrosstheworldbut
withapreferencealsofordrugs
fromdiseasesthataffectAfricans
disproportionately’
AbasiEne-Obong,Lagos,NigeriaKEMKA AJOKU