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The one week training, which was organized by the Institute's H3 Africa Bio-repository (I-HAB) in Abuja, had site research personnel including laboratory scientists, nurses and data assistants from the H3 Africa Kidney Disease Research Network in attendance.

According to IHVN Program Manager, Clinical Laboratory and Molecular Virology, Mrs. Petronilla Ozumba, the training, which attracted facilitators from the University of Michigan, taught best practices for collecting samples for researches that will have integrity and minimal risks. "This training is in line with the objectives of H3 Africa, which is to support African Investigators to conduct quality genomic and translational research in Africa and foster collaboration among investigators."

Practical laboratory sessions and lecture presentations were held on collecting blood, sputum, urine and saliva specimens, specimen processing, standard procedures, data management, standard procedures and specimen shipment. Participants were also introduced to Freezer Works, a software for managing samples.

A participant form University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Bawa Elias, said that he has been equipped to carry out packaging to avoid damage. "I was taught about the triple packaging in order to prevent damage and how to label amongst other things," he said. Olakiitan Abiola, another participant from Ibadan noted that she has been enlightened about things that seemed complex before. "When we ship our samples, we used the normal routine … but at least we are more enlightened on what to do, and labeling in a way that can be understood," she said.