Reliable communications are the lifeline
of any biomedical research program. This is particularly true when one attempts
to work in the field. At the inception of the MRTC in 1990, there was neither
telephone nor fax communication and Internet connectivity was not even a dream.
Over the years there has a steady improvement. The MRTC now has dedicated, but
not always reliable telephone/fax communications and senior MRTC staff have
personal cell phones. All are depending the outdated Malian telephone system
and international connections are usually difficult and sometimes impossible.
Since 1998, the MRTC has enjoyed -Internet connectivity and e-mail services
using a Malian Internet service provider.
This system is reasonably
reliable but has become increasingly slower as general traffic in Mali begins
to saturate the limited capacity of the Malian telephone system.
In December 2001, the NIH install a dedicated VSAT
system (Hughes Network System satelite) at the MRTC which give the Center
stand-alone operation independent of the Malian telephone grid and direct
connection to the Bethesda-based NIAID LAN. The system have three dishes, one
each at the MRTC and the Bandiagara vaccine trial site, and one on the roof of
the MVDU research facility in Rockville, MD.
Trial sites such as Doneguebougou and Bancoumana will be connected to
the MRTC by packet radio giving them real time connectivity.
Two trucks will be outfitted with packet radio systems to permit full connectivity away from fixed stations. This installation will include capabilities for telephone and fax connection directly into the NIH system. We has microwave which uses radio waves to connect Hospital Gabriel Toure 5 km, Disease Center for vaccine 8 km ( with Dr Samba Sow) and Molecular Biological lab 15 km with (Dr Ousmane Koita). We have one server for messages (Windows NT4) one server for database management (Windows 2000 Servers) two server Linux fedora (one for entomological Bioinformatic and one for
parasitology department).