The Institute of Primate Research, in the Ololua forest about 20 kilometers outside the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, has been in operation since it was founded by the archaeologist Louis Leakey in 1960. The institute's initial focus was on the study of evolution and the ecology of non-human primates, but today its emphasis has shifted toward biomedical research mainly using baboons.
However, government funding for the institute isn't what it could be, says its director, Emmanuel Wango, and any research shillings need to be garnered from international agencies such as the World Health Organization, or from collaborations with overseas scientists.
International collaborations have long been a regular occurrence at the lab, says Wango, "but it's something we want to enhance. We feel we've reached a point where we want to expand our mandate and research scope." So the institute has been talking to researchers in Europe and the United States,...
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