UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA - AFRICAN STUDIES CENTER
Call for Applications - Inequality & Infectious Diseases Research, 03/01

Call for Applications - Inequality & Infectious Diseases Research, 03/01



Call for grant applications for research on inequality and infectious disease emergence issued by the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR) at the World Health Organization.

Please share with colleagues or institutions that might be interested in our grant program. The TDR Programme invites applications for the award of Collaborative Research Grants (CRGs) to research institutions and scientists from least developed endemic countries (LDCs), and from high-burden countries for TDR target diseases on the following two research areas defined by the newly established Steering Committee on Social, Economic, and Behavioural Research (SEB):

1. Determinants of inequality of access to prevention, therapy and
information; and 2. Implications of changing economic, social, political and civil structures(including health reforms) for disease persistence, emer gence, resurgence and factors affecting them such as drug and insec ticide resistance.

Please consult the TDR webpage: http://www.who.int/tdr/grants/workplans/seb.htm

for SEB's workplan and focus research areas for the coming years. As outlined in the workplan, SEB aims to promote and support research that critically examines social, economic and behavioural issues related to disease persistence and emergence and contributes to innovative thinking about improved control and prevention of TDR diseases.

Despite significant, global efforts over the last 50 years, communicable diseases continue to obstruct social and economic development in developing countries, and disproportionately affect the poorest and most marginalized populations. A better understanding of how social, behavioural, political, economic and health system factors operate to affect disease patterns and disease control efforts will be important for identifying future needs, opportunities and innovations for improved control of TDR diseases (African trypanosomiasis, Chagas disease, dengue fever, leishmaniasis, leprosy, malaria, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, tuberculosis).

Collaborative Research Grants are the main type of research grant awarded by TDR. They are intended to support goal-oriented research. During 2000-2003, SEB will request research proposals on the following:

A. Inequality of access to prevention, therapy and information what factors affect access of populations to prevention, existing therapies, and information regarding TDR diseases? Factors that could be examined include those at the household/community, health systems and services, and non-health sectors/central government levels; SEB is particularly interested in studies that consider two or more levels and the links between them. Research questions of particular interest include but need not be confined to: * How can governments extend access and improve equity through provi sion, financing and regulation? * What are the implications of different kinds of public/private
partnerships for equity in access to pharmaceuticals and services? * What can be learned from existing or past partnerships, and how might we best assess their impact on equity? * To what extent are the needs of vulnerable populations being met through such partnerships? Partners might include the public sector, private-for-profit firms, donors, NGOs etc. * How can different approaches for increasing access to proven thera pies, prevention and information be best utilized to contribute to improved disease control?

B. Implications of changing economic, social, political and civil structures for infectious disease persistence, emergence and resurgence; and for drug and pesticide resistance Research questions of particular interest include but need not be confined to:

* What are the social, economic and political determinants of drug use patterns (at household, community, health systems and central government levels), and what are the implications of these, e.g., for drug resistance? * How are household choices and actions constrained or enabled by lo cal and large scale forces and processes? * What are the global forces and conditions promoting or retarding
the development and equitable distribution of effective preventive, diagnostic, and/or therapeutic technologies? * What is the impact (positive and negative) of large-scale economic processes and policies on the production and availability of effec tive drugs, diagnostics and vaccines? Examples of some large scale processes that might be examined are questions of intellectual prop erty rights, trade agreements, globalization, and widening social inequalities, and decentralization and privatisation of services.

HOW THE STEERING COMMITTEE WORKS The SEB Steering Committee will hold one meeting per year (in May/June) during which it will update its workplan, review new research proposals and monitor overall progress of the Committee. The Committee invites individual research projects with budgets normally not to exceed $25000 per year for a period of one to two years. The committee is particularly interested in supporting projects that involve South-South and South-North partnerships between institutions and individuals that will contribute to research capacity building for social science research in disease endemic countries. For group projects and, in exceptional cases individual projects, the Committee will consider projects requiring greater levels of funding.

HOW TO APPLY Collaborative Research Grant (CRG) application forms and instructions are available from TDR at: http://www.who.int/tdr/grants/grants/collgrant.htm

Please read and carefully follow the instructions for completing the application. Applicants are invited to be succinct, but may exceed the page limits given in the instructions for describing, in greater detail, the research design. If you are interested in submitting a proposal to the SEB Steering Committee an early letter of intent can be submitted to the SEB secretariat to request feedback before developing a full proposal. Application will be reviewed by the Steering Committee in June 2001.

DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF APPLICATIONS AT TDR 23 March 2001. Please let us know if we can help you with answering questions regarding this grant application program.

Sincerely,

Dr. Johannes Sommerfeld Secretary Social, Economic and Behavioural Research (SEB) Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR) UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Basic and Strategic Research Team (STR) Room L 259 CH-1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland Tel: +41-22-791-3954 Fax: +41-22-791-4854 mailto:sommerfeldj@who.int http://www.who.int/tdr

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Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar
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