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Programmes

What We Do

BBAU translates professional expertise into stronger institutions, informed policy and practical biological risk reduction.

Programme overview

Our work is organised around five mutually reinforcing areas: policy and guideline development; advocacy and awareness of current biological-risk trends; training, mentorship and capacity development; professional certification support; and multisectoral community and institutional engagement.

01

Policy and guideline development

BBAU contributes technical expertise to the development, review and implementation of national policies, legislation, guidelines, standards and tools for biosafety, biosecurity and biorisk management. We convene multidisciplinary professionals, translate international good practice into the Ugandan context and help institutions move from policy commitments to practical implementation.

Key areas

Laboratory biorisk management, High Consequence Agents and Toxins, dual-use and responsible life-science governance, biological waste management, transport security, infrastructure and containment, and cyber-biosecurity.

02

Advocacy and community awareness

We promote greater public, professional and political understanding of biological risks and the safeguards required for safe science. Through webinars, dialogues, outreach and technical communication, BBAU raises awareness of emerging biological events and risks associated with rapid advances in artificial intelligence, biotechnology, digital systems and the life sciences.

03

Training and capacity development

BBAU supports competency-based training, structured mentorship, institutional assessments, peer learning and technical assistance across One Health sectors. Our work helps professionals and organisations implement risk-based systems aligned with recognised standards and guidance, including ISO 35001, ISO 15190, the WHO Laboratory Biosafety Manual and relevant WOAH guidance.

04

Professional certification support

We encourage and prepare Ugandan professionals to pursue recognised biosafety and biosecurity credentials, including relevant IFBA professional certifications. Through its affiliation with the International Federation of Biosafety Associations, BBAU promotes global knowledge exchange, continuing professional development and competency-based practice. Certification is presented as part of a broader professional-development journey — not as a one-time endpoint.

05

Community and institutional engagement

BBAU connects professionals, communities and institutions across Uganda's One Health system. We provide a platform for networking, technical exchange, partnership building and coordinated action among human, animal, plant, wildlife and environmental health; academia and research; the private sector; policymakers, regulators and security institutions; and focal institutions responsible for the BWC, UNSCR 1540, the Cartagena Protocol and IHR (2005).