Strengthening research capacity in developing countries is one of the most effective and sustainable ways of advancing health and development in these countries and of helping correct the 10 / 90 Gap in health research that is the fact that only 10% of health research funds are applied to the health problems of 90% of the world’s population. Among the global health research needs, the diagnostic and surveillance of infectious diseases remains neglected but is a matter of key importance.
One challenge is how to build research capacity in the developing world. What is needed are political commitments, national research strategies, infrastructures, skills development, people asking nationally relevant questions, the capacity for countries to generate their own knowledge, the ability to use external knowledge, and a culture of enquiry. One of the best ways to invest in global health is to train young researchers in low-income countries and link them to the global medical, scientific and public health communities. In addition, an appropriate research environment has to be offered to them.
Challenges
There are, of course, numerous challenges to conducting scientific research in developing countries, ranging from limited material and financial resources to poor physical and communication infrastructures.
In most low-income countries, research seems a luxury in the face of other economic commitments and constraints, and many scientists hold several other jobs. The lack of scientific training, scientific careers, scientific tradition, institutional support and collaboration within the local scientific community aggravate the problem, along with the fact that available training is often operational in nature rather than research-oriented.
The global health research programme focuses on the following key diseases:
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is a leading killer of adult women under 45 years of age. The pressing need is for rapid and accurate diagnostic tools of MDR-TB and for epidemiology studies.
Pneumonia
Almost four children die from pneumonia every minute, a total of two million children each year, accounting for 19% of all deaths in under five. The need is to understand better the etiology and epidemiology of childhood pneumonia and to test vaccine efficacy.
Diarrhea
Nearly two million people in developing countries die from diarrhea each year, with children and other vulnerable groups most at risk. The pressing need is to understand epidemiology and causes of diarrhea.
Unknown fever
Patients with fever are most often treated against malaria, causing drug resistance treatment failure.
Neglected tropical diseases
Neglected tropical diseases affect 1.4 billion people in the world’s poorest countries. Yet many of them still lack appropriate diagnostic tools.
Goal
Strengthen global health research capacity in strong partnership with local actors in order to develop solutions adapted to their context.
Approach
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Assist countries in formulating their own research strategies in the field of infectious diseases;
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Provide technical and financial assistance to build, equip and run locally-owned infectious disease research laboratories;
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Link research laboratories to international networks such as the GABRIEL Network, set-up and coordinated by the Fondation Mérieux;
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Coordinate the setting-up and implementation of multi-centric studies involving these locally owned research laboratories;
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Help countries set-up Graduate Diplomas in Biology and Pharmacy;
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Provide fellowships and training for Doctoral and Post-Doctoral researchers who implement locally driven research projects;
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Provide continuous education to researchers both for technical and soft skills;
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Provide virtual and physical South-South and North-South networking and experience-sharing opportunities;
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Develop, transfer, adopt and evaluate locally relevant diagnostic tools and solutions to global health problems and share results with the research community as well as with all relevant stakeholders.
Achievements
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4 countries were assisted in setting up their research strategy in the subjects of TB and respiratory infections;
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3 locally owned infectious disease research laboratories have been built, equipped and are currently functioning in Haiti, Laos and Madagascar;
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5 research laboratories from developing countries are involved in a first multi-centric pneumonia study;
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More than 30 researchers obtained a Graduate Diploma in Biology in Cambodia;
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20 African researchers obtained a Post-Doctoral degree in Neglected Tropical Diseases;
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3,000 researchers benefited from continuous education during intensive training programmes and seminars / conferences.