COSECSA
 | |
| Established | December 1999 |
|---|---|
| Address | ECSA Health Community Building, 157 Olorien, Njiro Road, Arusha, Tanzania |
| President | Dr Miliard Derbew (Ethiopia) |
| Website | http://www.cosecsa.org |
The College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa (COSECSA) is an independent body that fosters postgraduate education in surgery and provides surgical training throughout the region of East, Central and Southern Africa.[1] COSECSA delivers a common surgical training programme with a common examination and qualification.
COSECSA is a non-profit making body that currently operates in 10 countries in the sub-Saharan region: Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
History
COSECSA grew out of the Association of Surgeons of East Africa (ASEA). ASEA was formally inaugurated in Nairobi, Kenya on the 9th November 1950. In 1996, in response to perceived inadequacies of surgical training in the region, the ASEA steering committee decided to create the College of Surgeons of East, Central & Southern Africa (COSECSA). These inadequacies were seen to be the limited capacity of university teaching hospitals' surgical training programmes, the increasing difficulty in accessing UK surgical training programmes at that time[2] and the variability of training programmes from country to country.
The official inauguration of the College was held in Nairobi in December 1999.[3] In December 2001, at the first annual general meeting in Lusaka, Zambia the council of the college was elected by the foundation fellows.
Academic structure
COSECSA has two programmes:
- The Membership: A certificate of competence in surgery at General Medical Officer Grade (minimum 2 years training).
- The Fellowship: A specialist qualification in General Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery, Neurosurgery, Urology, Paediatric Surgery, Plastic Surgery or Otorhinolaryngology(minimum 5 years training).
Since it first held examinations in 2003, the College has graduated 158 specialist surgeons.
Members and fellows
There are over 800 Members and Fellows of the college.
Partner organisations
COSECSA has a long-standing collaboration programme with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and is a founding association of the Pan African Association of Surgeons.