Post on 14-Jan-2016
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Michael Devlin, COHRED
Irish Forum for Global Health 30 November, 2010
Maynooth
Research for Health Approaches to research system strengthening – country perspectives
Toward ‘system thinking’
What is research system building and why is it
important?
Issues for countries and donors.
The world COHRED would like to see.
Putting system building in to action:‘Research for Health-Africa’
charity
vertical programmes
development
doing it enabling it
Redefining development
The issue
5 million lives saved...…but a statistic is missing
The world we would like to see
The economic success of the world’s high incomecountries since the World War II was builton deliberate and planned investments in science andtechnology1.
Today, donors and development partners:• Support primarily short term projects and activities targeting
short term resluts
• Seldom cover overheads
• Do not invest in the infrastructure and capacity building that has brought their countries sustained growth and stability.
1.Science and Innovation for Development, Sir Gordon Conway and Professor Jeff Waage, with Sara Delaney. UKCDS, 2010.
The world we would like to see
The missing link:
An investment in systems, for governance and
management of research in low income countries is a
direct investment in a country’s economic future.
The world we would like to see
Remark by NEPAD official in External Review
The international context is becoming more complicated and needs more adapted tools and mechanisms…..
….a gap between strategies/programmes of international players mandated by the international community (i.e. UN bodies including WHO) and the true aspirations of the low and middle income countries
Responsible Vertical Programming
•old examples: USA, Western EuropeLisbon treaty – 3% of GNP on science and technology
•more recent examples : South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore
•actively changing now : India, Brazil, South Africa, Thailand, China
•aspiring low income countries : Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania
Investing in research & innovation
India & Brazil
Uganda
The money will help Uganda fulfil an ambition, stated in the government's budget for 2010–11, to cut its dependence on foreign aid — the country received US$1.66 billion in development assistance in 2008.
The money will help Uganda fulfil an ambition, stated in the government's budget for 2010–11, to cut its dependence on foreign aid — the country received US$1.66 billion in development assistance in 2008.
Museveni's plan for spending the oil windfall is set out in a five year national development plan, published in mid-April, which focuses on innovation and applied science. Among the aims are the construction of four regional science parks and technology incubation centres to foster entrepreneurship.
Museveni's plan for spending the oil windfall is set out in a five year national development plan, published in mid-April, which focuses on innovation and applied science. Among the aims are the construction of four regional science parks and technology incubation centres to foster entrepreneurship.
Rwanda
Nigeria
Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa state has called on international donor organisations and other developed countries of the world to always conceptualise their programmes and projects of support in cognisance of the peculiar needs of the benefiting countries.
The governor declared that "The approach has to be changed, programmes and projects like this have to be developed, based on our perspective and needs otherwise, it will be of no impact to us".He explained that Nigeria has passed the stage in which a concept will be developed in far away Europe, "which has no connection with our peculiarity and expect that idea to work here".
Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa state has called on international donor organisations and other developed countries of the world to always conceptualise their programmes and projects of support in cognisance of the peculiar needs of the benefiting countries.
The governor declared that "The approach has to be changed, programmes and projects like this have to be developed, based on our perspective and needs otherwise, it will be of no impact to us".He explained that Nigeria has passed the stage in which a concept will be developed in far away Europe, "which has no connection with our peculiarity and expect that idea to work here".
Taking a systems perspective
COHRED support to countries
The world we would like to see
Strong national systems for ‘research for health’.
Low and middle income countries have skills and systems tomanage research and innovation for improved health, equity anddevelopment. Donors and health programmes research fundersuse country priorities as a starting point .
‘Responsible programming’ of vertical health initiatives
All external programmes and actors operating in research for health inlow and middle income countries will also build the capacity ofresearchers and the systems their partner countries.
Council on Health Research for Development
COHRED
Support countries to strengthen their health research systems.
Technical assistance, tools and approaches
Share experience between countries
‘Making the case’. Studies + advocacy for global health funds to target priorities of low and middle income countries.
Practical tools, approaches
Framework - National Health Research System Strengthening
Support to policies priorities, governance, research management….and more
Framework – Research Capacity strengtheningDeveloping capacity – researchers, institutions, system
Pharmaceutical Innovation ToolSupport to countries – developing innovation strategies and capacity.
Priority setting
Policy development
Coordinating mechanism
Political commitment
Human resources for HR
Financing
Science communication
Information systems
increasing research capacity
developing comprehensive national research system support
‘level’ of
development
locus ofintervention
nature of intervention
individual
institution
research system
socio- economi
c&political
international
collaboration & linkage
1‘capacity building’
master level training
grants manage-ment
basis of NHRS
increase demand for research
good partner-ships (e.g. Alignm & Harmonisation)
2‘capacity strengthening’
doctoral level training
merit-based promotion system
research ethics review capacity
civil society engagement
fair research contracting
3‘performance enhancement’* equity-focus
networking researchers, peer reviews
research communica-tion
monitoring & evaluation of output and impact
focus health, equity & soc-econ development
focus on research competitiveness
Research for Health-Africa programme
NEPAD-COHRED supporting partner countries
Goal:
Work with national institutions to become centres of excellence for health research for development and system strengthening
Research is a key driver for developmentBut insufficiently used in Africa - due to unclear: • research governance structure• priorities/direction, and policy framework
Research for Health Africa
• Research + S&T institutions - Senegal, Tanzania (3rd country to be confirmed).
• NEPAD Agency• COHRED • Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs• Other countries to join
Partners
Start-up phase – Support to countries
• Strengthen governance, including priority setting, policy framework.
• Develop a national information system for research for health
• Measurement and tracking - develop M&E system
• Further system strengthening - research utilisation capacity, ethics review capacity
Tanzania – issues and challenges (2009)
• Strengthen research governance
• Improve access to essential information to manage research
• Enhance financial stability for research for health
Issues and challenges – Senegal
Partners:Ministry of Health, Ministry of S&T and Higher Education
• Governance: building blocks in place, but enhanced coordination needed, also across sectors
• Financing: implementing international recommendations that are supported by the MoH Senegal
• Desire to build national information system (also to track financial resources)
charity
vertical programmes
development
doing it enabling it
Redefining development
Thank you
Rwanda
To prosper, Rwanda would have to confront other dubious Western ideas. The rich world, says Kagame, still looks at Africa with "absolute contempt" for being poor. Aid and human rights are just Western arrogance in a white SUV, a fresh manifestation of the old belief that Africans cannot take care of themselves. Fix the poverty via business, which has rocketed — not aid, which Kagame insists is temporary — and you remove the reason for prejudice. "The rich world says Rwanda is a small country, an African country, a poor country," he says. "I reject that."
To prosper, Rwanda would have to confront other dubious Western ideas. The rich world, says Kagame, still looks at Africa with "absolute contempt" for being poor. Aid and human rights are just Western arrogance in a white SUV, a fresh manifestation of the old belief that Africans cannot take care of themselves. Fix the poverty via business, which has rocketed — not aid, which Kagame insists is temporary — and you remove the reason for prejudice. "The rich world says Rwanda is a small country, an African country, a poor country," he says. "I reject that."