The UCT Centre for Bioethics recently hosted the International Research Ethics Network for Southern Africa's (IRENSA) fifth annual research ethics seminar.

The IRENSA programme is funded by the US National Institutes of Health's John E Fogarty International Centre.

Its goal, by running a 12-month nationally registered postgraduate diploma in International Research Ethics programme, is to develop sustainable multidisciplinary expertise in international research ethics in Southern Africa. In this way, IRENSA hopes to meet the challenges posed by both an exponential increase in the volume of clinical research in developing countries, and by concern about unethical research, especially in HIV/AIDS.

The seminar brought together various ethics experts from South African universities, who presented on topics like HIV prevention trials and mental health research.

NIH has renewed the IRENSA grant to the tune of almost US$1 000 000 (±R 7 175600), extending the programme to 2010.