Ngange Kebbeh joined MRC Unit The Gambia at LSHTM in 2010 as a laboratory technician in a Global Enteric Multi-site Study (GEMS). He was primarily responsible for sample reception, processing, bacteria isolation, media preparation, QA/QC activities and serotyping. In 2014, Ngange starting working with both the clinical (ISO 15189 accredited) and research laboratories. The challenges and ambition to learn new skills and take up higher responsibilities inspired him to pursue a degree in biology in which he graduated from in 2016. After working in both Vaccine and Immunity and Disease Elimination and Control Themes, he joined the Nutrition Theme in 2017 in the Mothers Infants and Lactation Quality (MILQ) study. This is a multisite study to establish reference values for micronutrients (MN) in human breast milk, with the aim of identifying the quality of breast milk MN concentrations in populations and improve estimates of micronutrients requirements across the first 9 months of infant life.

At the MRC Festival, Ngange will be presenting the importance of nutrition in pregnancy and early life of the infant as well as its benefits. It includes an adequate, well-balanced diet combined with regular physical exercises. Maternal nutrition is very important during the course and outcome of pregnancy with nearly half of all deaths in children under 5 years are attributable to under-nutrition, translating into the loss of about 3 million young lives a year globally (Unicef, 2016).

Ngange will be looking into the importance of pregnant and lactating women nutritional requirements and benefits. He will also look into infant and young children nutrition in their first 1000 days of life and exclusive breastfeeding infants for the first 6 months of life. Poor nutrition leads to reduced immunity, high susceptibility to diseases and poor mental development thus reducing productivity.