The Southern African Human Genome Programme

The Southern African Human Genome Programme (SAHGP) is a national and regional initiative that aims to unlock the unique genetic character of southern African populations. Its vision is to improve quality of life through understanding human genetic diversity. It is timely to advance the SAHGP initiative since global genomic initiatives are increasingly pointing to populations in Africa, more specifically the San and Khoe from southern Africa, as harbouring the most ancient genetic signatures among the living populations of the world. Studies on African populations have already generated a wealth of information upon which the SAHGP can build. This information will be used to promote and support genomic research programmes both nationally and regionally to address critical questions that would benefit the people of our region. The SAHGP aims to make a significant contribution to the understanding of DNA variation among southern Africans and how this impacts on the health of the people of this region.

Aims of the SAHGP:
To develop capacity for genomic research in southern Africa;
To establish sustainable resources for genomic research in the region; and
To translate knowledge and information into improvements in human health in the region.

The objective is to derive the maximum benefit from the SAHGP, and that the data should be widely shared with the scientific community for the benefit of the people of the sub-continent and beyond.EGA study EGAS00001002639