ENGAGE Spotlight: Cynthia Kilango

Finding purpose in an era of AI: Cynthia Kilango's story

Cynthia Kilango is on a transformative journey she never expected. She is currently in Kotka, Finland, pursuing a social sciences program at the South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences (XAMK). A few months ago, she was presenting research at major conferences in Nairobi. Before that, she was a public health graduate with a deep curiosity about data science and artificial intelligence, and no clear path forward.

Kilango had tried various online courses, but none compared to the impact of the ENGAGE Project (Enabling Girls in AI and Growing Expertise), a training program run in partnership between UCSF and the University of Nairobi. As she puts it: "Before ENGAGE, I never knew what exactly it was I wanted to pursue. Now I do."

The training gave her both the skills and the exposure she needed. After completing the program, Kilango interned at a community health facility, where she witnessed firsthand the financial and emotional burden many young mothers face when seeking treatment. She began exploring how predictive models could support earlier intervention and better health outcomes for women, particularly those from low-income households. The result: a machine learning model designed to help screen for anemia in pregnant women.

Her work caught the attention of organizers at the KEMRI Annual Scientific and Health Conference, where she presented her abstract before a room of researchers and subject matter experts. Doors began to open to networks and possibilities she had never imagined.

Kilango knows what those opportunities can mean. She comes from a humble background, and her parents struggled to keep her in school. A scholarship carried her education from secondary school through university. "I would probably be married somewhere with 10 children," she recalls. "The scholarship brought consistency in school. It helped me perform better."

Now, in Finland, Kilango is learning how to design sustainable solutions. Her hope is to use research, data science, and AI to solve problems at the community level, her newfound mission.

---

The ENGAGE Project is a collaborative training program led by the University of Nairobi in partnership with UCSF and six other Kenyan universities. Together, they work to empower young women to use AI and data science to improve health outcomes at the community level.

GP Uganda Supports One Health Surveillance Work in the Middle East and North Africa

Software Developer Ahmed Abouzaid (left) and Technical Deputy Director for Global Informatics David Mugume (right), presenting the plan for rebuilding the EBS system and capacity building at a workshop in Cairo.

Since September 2025, Global Programs Uganda's One Health work in the Middle East and North Africa has continued to evolve, with the team contributing health informatics expertise to digital disease surveillance efforts in Egypt and the broader region.

In Egypt, the team is supporting the pilot of a DHIS2-based vector-borne disease surveillance system with the Ministry of Health and Population. The project represents a meaningful step in the Ministry’s broader effort to digitalize One Health processes and strengthen systems that support disease detection, monitoring, and response.

Building on that momentum, and following the team’s earlier work rebuilding EgyptEBS, Egypt’s event-based surveillance system, UCSF was invited to support the operationalization of Egypt’s new National Electronic Disease Surveillance System (NEDSS). Global Programs Uganda is contributing health informatics expertise to this effort, with team lead David Mugume supporting two software engineers based in Jordan and Egypt to help ensure the systems are built, piloted, and delivered on time.

The work has continued during a challenging funding environment for public health programs. Despite uncertainty, progress has been sustained through strong relationships with the Ministry of Health and Population and CDC MENA, as well as the commitment of colleagues working across Cairo, Amman, and Kampala.

The effort reflects the value of long-term partnerships and regional collaboration in advancing One Health priorities. Even as conditions shift, the work continues to support countries as they strengthen surveillance systems and build more integrated approaches to public health.

The team’s contributions strengthen UCSF's One Health approach to pandemic preparedness across MENA, supported by regional collaboration spanning Cairo, Amman, and Kampala.

Global Programs HIV/TB Technical Lead Presents ART Adherence Findings at INTEREST Conference

Immaculata Kessy, HIV/TB Technical Lead for Global Programs Tanzania, presented recent findings on barriers and facilitators to antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence among people living with HIV in Tanzania at the International Conference on HIV Treatment, Pathogenesis, and Prevention Research (INTEREST) held in Dar es Salaam in May 2026.

Her poster, “Barriers and Facilitators to Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) Adherence among Virally Unsuppressed People Living with HIV (PLHIV) in Tanzania, 2025,” shared results from a qualitative assessment conducted as part of the Enhanced Adherence Counselling (EAC) program assessment.

The assessment included in-depth interviews with 51 people living with HIV across three regions of Tanzania. Participants had viral loads above 1,000 copies and had not successfully engaged with EAC services. The study explored the socioeconomic, behavioral, psychosocial, clinical, and health-system factors that influence ART adherence and continued engagement in care.

Findings highlighted several commonly cited barriers, including food insecurity, transportation costs, forgetfulness, stigma, and experiences with judgmental counseling. At the same time, participants identified key facilitators that supported adherence, including socioeconomic support, family and community support, and non-judgmental counseling.

The findings underscore the importance of addressing adherence not only as a clinical issue, but also as one shaped by daily living conditions, trust, stigma, and the quality of patient-provider interactions. By elevating the voices of people living with HIV who are experiencing challenges with viral suppression, this work provides practical insight for strengthening EAC services and improving long-term engagement in HIV care.

The research was conducted in partnership with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Tanzania's National AIDS, STIs and Hepatitis Control Programme (NASHCoP). Christen Said, UCSF's In-Country Program Manager for Global Strategic Information (GSI) projects in Tanzania, is a co-author.