CFA Ronald H. Brown African Affairs Series.
December 2014, President & CEO, Mr. Raymond C. Dabney initiated a partnership between CBIS and the Constituency for Africa (CFA) to help improve the healthcare and health-related education infrastructure in Africa. Founded in 1990, and now in its 25th year of operation, the CFA has emerged as a leading organization for mobilizing public and private support for Africa in Washington, DC.
CFA's Ronald H. Brown African Affairs Series is an important annual event for Cannabis Science as it allows the Company to share ideas and build on our current collaborations for research and multi-center clinical trials.
2017
September 2017, Cannabis Science presented an update to its African Drug Development Initiative at the Constituency for Africa's (CFA) Ronald H. Brown African Affairs Series in Washington, DC. Convened annually, the Ronald H. Brown Series is a major U.S.-Africa Policy Forum, and is attended by stakeholders from government, private sector, civil society, academia, and the media from the U.S., Africa, and the African Diaspora.
During the Healthcare roundtable on Strengthening Healthcare Infrastructure in Africa, Cannabis Science's President and CEO, Mr. Raymond Dabney, and the Company's Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. Allen Herman, presented an update on Cannabis Science's African Drug Development Initiative which includes educational and job creation programs.
The theme of the Healthcare Roundtable was Reversing Africa's Brain Drain: The Role of the African Diaspora in Strengthening the Healthcare Infrastructure of Africa, and the session explored strategies to invest in and develop Africa's health workers, healthcare and social services infrastructure, logistics, surveillance and health information systems, healthcare governance, and drug supply systems. The roundtable was moderated by the Honorable Donna Christensen, former Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and former Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Health Braintrust; and Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins, Joint Visiting Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Perry World House and Brookings Institution. Distinguished speakers included the Honorable Dr. Arikana Chihombori, the African Union's Ambassador to the U.S.; Dr. John Nkengasong, Director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Professor Akin Abayomi, Principal Investigator for the Global Emerging Pathogens Treatment Consortium (GET Africa); and Dr. Wilfred Ngwa, Global Health Catalyst Director at the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center.
2016
September 2016, Cannabis Science’s President, Chief Executive Officer, and Co-Founder, Mr. Raymond C. Dabney, served as Co-Chair of the CFA’s Ronald H. Brown African Affairs Series. The theme of the 2016 year’s event was “Setting the US-African Agenda for the Next Administration”. Within this event Mr. Dabney was also was a principal participant in the ground breaking African Healthcare Infrastructure Roundtable and a U.S.-Africa Policy Forum.
As Co-Chair, Mr. Dabney had the opportunity to discuss CBIS' initiatives in Sub-Saharan Africa with key American and African stakeholders, including the educational and drug development plans in Sub-Saharan Africa.
At the U.S.-Africa Policy Forum, held at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University, Mr. Dabney was a principal participant in a robust discussion on African healthcare issues, and contributed to the development of specific policy recommendations that will be presented to the next U.S. administration. The recommendations developed -- for the next U.S. administration -- for strengthening Africa's healthcare infrastructure included the creation of a Centers for Disease Control in Africa; treating healthcare infrastructure in Africa as a national security issue; tapping more into the skill-set, knowledge, expertise and experience of the African Diaspora; strengthening African regional and sub-regional institutions; and developing robust surveillance systems for non-communicable diseases, that are increasingly becoming the new African epidemics.
Mr. Dabney also delivered remarks at CFA's Roundtable on Strengthening Healthcare Infrastructure in Africa at the African Union (AU) in Georgetown, and was one of a select number of principal participants in CFA's U.S.-Africa Policy Forum. At the Healthcare Roundtable, Mr. Dabney spoke about Cannabis Science's drug development initiative in Africa, and met with key stakeholders in government, private sector, and academia.
"By actively participating as a principal in the Healthcare Roundtables, we bring our entrepreneurial vision for commercial activities in Africa, in partnership with Africans. These engagements will continue to cultivate existing and new relationships with experts who can add value to Cannabis Science's business through their knowledge in the areas of research and development, clinical studies, market access, and legal and regulatory matters," concluded CBIS CEO, Mr. Dabney.