The National Health Research and Training Institute (NHRTI) is Zambia’s statutory national institute for health research and training. Our foundation was laid in 1975, when the World Health Organization established the Tropical Diseases Research Centre (TDRC) in Ndola. In 1982, TDRC was brought under Zambian government custodianship following the enactment of the TDRC Act No. 31 of 1982. Parliament reconstituted the institution in 2024 as the National Health Research and Training Institute under Act No. 13 of 2024.
An enduring institution
Five decades of discovery
While our statutory name has evolved, our core commitment to health research and evidence generation has remained constant for over half a century.
We are a Health Research Institute, Not a Project
Health research is often structured around short-term projects that end after three to five years, risking the loss of technical momentum, community trust, and infrastructure. Because NHRTI is established by an Act of Parliament, we operate differently. Governed by a Board appointed by the Minister of Health, we provide permanent institutional continuity. This permanence allows us to:
Sustain long-term community relationships to track multi-year epidemiological shifts, such as our 14-year longitudinal malaria research programme in Nchelenge District.
Maintain critical biobanks and scientific memory for ongoing national health security.
Offer long-term reliability for global partners whose multi-year initiatives require an enduring in-country institution.
Core Mandate and Portfolio
Health research
Studies of infectious disease, nutrition, non-communicable disease and health systems, with a strong focus on implementation.
Clinical and laboratory services
Patient services, diagnostic testing and reference laboratory expertise.
Training and capacity development
Researcher development and an emerging training programme shaped by national needs.
Recent achievements
New studies in malaria, vector control and tuberculosis show research in action.
Historical achievements
Discover seven research stories that helped shape health knowledge and policy.
Partnerships
Collaboration with communities, universities, health facilities and national and international institutions.
Historical achievements
Explore seven ways research at TDRC helped Zambia understand disease, test interventions and shape public-health decisions. Open a story to read more.
01 Malaria drug resistanceFrom a first reported case to a national picture
TDRC reported an early confirmed case of chloroquine-resistant Plasmodium falciparum in a patient from Ndola. Subsequent work with the National Malaria Control Centre, WHO, CDC and other partners mapped resistance across Zambia. The findings helped build the evidence for changes to antimalarial treatment policy.
02 Evidence for a new malaria treatmentStudying artemether–lumefantrine in Zambian adults
As resistance to earlier medicines increased, TDRC investigated the safety and efficacy of artemether–lumefantrine for uncomplicated malaria in Zambian adults. This work formed part of the evidence considered as Zambia changed its treatment guidelines.
03 Insecticide resistance and indoor sprayingTesting which tools worked against mosquitoes
Working with the National Malaria Control Centre, TDRC assessed resistance to insecticides used in malaria control. Before the national indoor residual spraying programme began in 2003, teams also assessed DDT effectiveness in Ndola and Kitwe. Their findings informed decisions about vector-control approaches.
04 Yellow-fever vector surveysMapping mosquitoes in northwestern and western Zambia
In a Ministry of Health study supported by WHO, TDRC examined the distribution of yellow-fever mosquito vectors. The survey recorded Aedes aegypti and Aedes africanus, with sparse distribution reported in the surveyed northwestern areas. These are historical study findings; travel and vaccination requirements should always be checked against current guidance.
05 Understanding childhood blindnessInvestigating vitamin A deficiency in Luapula
TDRC scientists investigated childhood blindness in Luapula Province and identified severe vitamin A deficiency and xerophthalmia as an important cause. That evidence challenged an earlier assumption that the cases were due to river blindness.
06 Vitamin A and food fortificationTurning nutrition research into public-health evidence
Together with the National Food and Nutrition Commission, TDRC studied micronutrient deficiencies. The institute’s record connects this work with evidence used to develop vitamin A supplementation for children and sugar fortification in Zambia.
07 Tsetse traps and sleeping-sickness surveillanceCombining practical control tools with disease mapping
TDRC scientists developed simple tsetse traps as part of efforts to reduce the flies that transmit sleeping sickness. A later situation analysis reviewed reported human African trypanosomiasis cases from January 2000 to April 2007 and identified districts where control work remained relevant.
These historical accounts describe research and policy development at the time. They are not current medical or travel advice.
Our scientific home
Expertise that connects disciplines
NHRTI hosts the National Health Research Reference Laboratory. Its work includes medical laboratory testing, tuberculosis reference services, molecular methods and vector research.
Laboratory, clinical and population research are connected through the institute’s departments.
