The Future of Dementia in Africa:
Advancing Global Partnerships                                        
                                                                        

Dr Edna N Bosire is an Assistant Professor in Medical Anthropology and Impleme​ntati​​on Science at the Brain and Mind Institute (BMI)​, Aga Khan University, Kenya, and the Lead for the BMI’s  Living Lab- East Africa.  She is also an appointed faculty at the Aga Khan University’s department of Population health in Nairobi, and an honorary research scientist at the Developmental Pathways for Health Research Unit​ (DPHRU) in Johannesburg, South Africa. Previously, Edna worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Scientist for the Blantyre Prevention Strategy (BPS) at Georgetown University’s Centre for Innovation in Global Health​ (USA) and Kamuzu University of Health Sciences​, Malawi. Edna holds a PhD in Medical Anthropology and Public Health from the University ​of the Witwatersrand​, South Africa, and MA in Medical Anthropology from the University of Nairobi. 
Over the past 15 years, she has used various anthropological, public health, and implementation science theories and frameworks to design and implement health research projects in urban poor settings in Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, and Malawi. She writes a lot about chronic illnesses and patients experiences with comorbidities and multimorbidity. Her other research interests and contributions are in health systems strengthening, Mental and Brain Health, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, climate change and nutrition.

She is currently the Principal Investigator (PI) for a Dementia project- funded by the DAVOS Alzheimer’s Collaborative, that is being implemented at the Aga Khan hospital, Nairobi Kenya; and PI for a Climate change and Mental Health project, funded by Georgetown University​ (USA), being implemented in Kilifi County, Kenya. Edna has experience and expertise working collaboratively with marginalized communities, and other stakeholders at community levels using community based participatory research approaches (CBPR) and co-creating interventions to ensure​ that implementation strategies are contextually designed and are people centered.

Wambui Karanja holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology Degree from Kenyatta University. With over five years of experience in dementia care and advocacy, she has actively contributed to initiatives addressing this critical ​health issue.

She brings extensive experience in dementia care and advocacy. Her background includes leadership roles in the Dementia Education Exchange Program (DEEPIK) at the Alzheimer's and Dementia Organization Kenya (ADOK) and research on perceptions of dementia among informal caregivers in Nairobi during her graduate attachment at the British Institute in Eastern Africa.

She is a Global Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health and coordinates the Africa Brain Health Network. As an Atlantic Fellow, Wambui co-led the development of the charter of conduct and checklist for global collaborators to promote equity in applied dementia research. 

Wambui is also an engaged member of the International Society to Advance Alzheimer's Research and Treatment (ISTAART), where she has co-chaired the Low and Middle-Income Countries Workgroup within the Diversities and Disparities PIA.

​Wambui's primary goal is to advance the understanding of dementia and foster collaborative communities for brain health and dementia in Africa.​​