15/12/2022
GloPID-R 2022 Highlights and Season’s Greetings
This has been an eventful year for GloPID-R. Over the course of 2022, we received new funding commitments for 2023-2025, including the renewed support of the European Commission. This was followed by the excitement of meeting in person for the first time in 3 years for our General Assembly in mid-October. We are now preparing the transfer of the GloPID-R Secretariat from the Mérieux Foundation in Lyon to the Charité Center for Global Health in Berlin, effective as of January 2023. This time of transition coincides with the renewal of the Executive Board and the Scientific Advisory Board early next year.
As we embark on new beginnings, of what we are calling GloPID-R 3.0, it is important to build on our strengths and achievements, as well as the lessons learnt during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now more than ever, I am convinced that GloPID-R has a vital role to play to improve the global coordination of research funders, so that the world will be better prepared for the next infectious disease outbreak.
With sincere thanks to our members, observers and partners for their essential contributions in 2022, I wish you all a healthy and joyous holiday season. I hope after a break of two years, we will all be able to enjoy a more normal Holiday Season with our loved ones.
Charu Kaushic, GloPID-R Chair
2022 key figures
- 33 members
- 7 observers
- 2 of 4 regional hubs underway
- 4 working groups (Clinical Trial Networks & Funders, Data Sharing, One Health (in progress) & Research in LMICs)
2022 key events
- February – Funders’ Roundtable: Improving Clinical Trials Coordination virtual meeting
- September – Clinical Trial Networks & Funders (CTN&F) Workshop meeting in Annecy, France
- October – GloPID-R General Assembly 2022 meeting in Berlin, Germany
- November – Asia-Pacific Conference launch in Jeju, South Korea
2022 key projects
Regional Hubs
Steady progress was made in the roll-out of our regional hub strategy in 2022. Designed to strengthen regional research networks, the 4-hub structure helps address inequity in research funding and will contribute to regional responsibilities and ownership. On November 9-10, the Asia-Pacific Regional Hub, led by Dr. Choong-Min Ryu of NRF/KRIBB, held its kick-off conference in South Korea.
Following the successful application for an EDCTP grant funded by the UK DHSC, the African Regional Hub, led by Dr. Charles Shey Wiysonge, organized a preparatory on-site meeting in September at SAMRC Cape Town.
Pandemic PACT Research Tracker
Development of this agile and powerful resource for funders and the research community gathered momentum in 2022. Pandemic PACT (Pandemic Preparedness: Analytical Capacity and funding Tracking programme) will have the research and analytical capability to collate and analyze global funding data and identify research needs on an ongoing basis to inform policy and support decision making for preparedness and response. Developed alongside our partner UKCDR, it will cover a wide range of diseases as well as broader epidemic and pandemic research preparedness activities, in alignment with WHO priorities. It will be ready to pivot to track novel diseases and is expected to be active in 2023. Several GloPID-R members are contributing to this work, including: EDCTP (with UK DHSC funding), IDRC, Wellcome and ZonMW. It is being led by the GloPID-R Research and Policy Team.
Living Funders’ Roadmap for coordination of clinical trials
Following the meeting in Annecy in September and members’ input in October, the principles of the roadmap have received wide endorsement. With valuable recommendations for funders, this living roadmap is nearing completion thanks to the diligence of the Clinical Trial Networks & Funders (CTN&F) and Data Sharing Working Groups. It is designed to provide a comprehensive guide to GloPID-R members on actions to strengthen clinical trial coordination in response to new and re-emerging outbreaks of epidemic and pandemic potential.
Coordinated Funding Mechanism
Significant strides have been made towards the development of a GloPID-R coordinated funding mechanism similar to the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases (GACD) model, with plans to open a first joint call by the end of 2023.
COVID CIRCLE: Coordinating and Tracking COVID-19 Research
The COVID CIRCLE programme to improve coordination of COVID-19 research with a focus on lower-resource settings continued its work, including the COVID-19 Research Project Tracker and associated Living Mapping Review (LMR). Published in November, the 8th iteration of the LMR contains updated information to support research funders in their decisions to invest in priority areas. Two further LMR iterations will complete the outputs of this joint UKCDR-GloPID-R initiative, which will be finalized at the end of 2022. The expertise gained throughout this project will serve to enrich the development of the Pandemic PACT program.
GloPID-R Communications
- Our modernized, revamped GloPID-R website went live in June.
- We created a short motion design film to introduce GloPID-R. Please view, use and share it.
- We ramped up our social media presence, on Twitter and LinkedIn.
- We continued to build closer relations with members, showcasing their work on the new website, in our news and on social media.
2022 research & policy highlights
Sudan Virus Disease
The GloPID-R Research & Policy team has conducted a rapid search of existing research on Sudan ebolavirus and shared this in a briefing across the GloPID-R membership. Recently, an article on Sudan ebolavirus was accepted for publication by BMJ Global Health.
Monkeypox
In August, the team contributed to a systematic review of clinical guidance on monkeypox in BMJ Global Health. GloPID-R has shared member update briefings and held three convening calls to share information about Mpox-related activities by funding organisations to increase funder transparency and potential for coordination.
Hepatitis
In July, our scientists published an article in BMC Medicine about severe acute hepatitis in young children.
Research Prioritization
Based on lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Research in LMICs Working Group is about to publish a report with recommendations for research priorities in response to disease outbreaks.
What’s in the pipeline for 2023?
- Election of new Executive Board and reinstatement of Scientific Advisory Board
- The African Regional Hub will hold its launch meeting.
- Work will continue on the expansion of membership in the Asia-Pacific Hub.
- We will begin development of the Latin American Regional Hub.
- Our CTN&F Living Roadmap for Funders will be published.
- The Pandemic PACT Research Tracker tool is expected to be active.
- Our Coordinated Funding Project plans to open a first joint call by the end of 2023.
- Our ‘One Health’ Working Group will be formed in partnership with STAR-IDAZ. It will define its terms of reference and review its strategy.
