On 29 August 2022, the kick-off meeting for the project ‘The project for institutional capacity building for eliminating Helicobacter pylori related death’ was held at Khesar Gyalpo University of Medical Sciences of Bhutan, Thimphu (KGUMSB) in the presence of the Minister of Health.

The project is being implemented as Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) by research institutions in both Japan and Bhutan to solve global issues, in collaboration with JICA and the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED).

At the kick-off meeting, Professor Yoshio Yamaoka of the Department of Environmental and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Oita University, the Japanese research representative organisation, gave an explanation of the overall project. The Bhutanese Minister of Health commented that gastric cancer control is in line with the country‘s priority areas and welcomed the project’s focus on human resource development. The project will be implemented over the next five years.

During the five-year project period, the project will strengthen the system to provide appropriate testing, diagnosis and treatment for H. pylori infection through the development of rapid H. pylori diagnosis kit, rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing for appropriate eradication treatment, human resource development through training in endoscopic techniques, nationwide survey on H. pylori infection and awareness-raising activities.