ABSTRACT
Sub-Saharan African is a deeply religious and spiritual region where beliefs and scientific advances coexist. However, in matters of health, the relationship between religious and scientific institutions is complex. While religious, spiritual, and cultural gatekeepers do work in close collaboration with the scientific community, there are cases in which a clash of worldviews creates a public rebuff of medical advancements, research studies, and public health literacy campaigns. Biomedical technologies, including genetic and genomic advancements, hold tremendous promise, but people must contextualize such advancements, taking into consideration lived experiences and informal institutions that govern lives. Religion is paramount. As Africans prepare for the expansion of genetics and genomic medicines on their continent, this essay examines factors that can impact the uptake of interventions—specifically, possible dilemmas that arise when geneticists and genomic specialists offer perspectives that contradict traditional religious or spiritual dictates.
