25 April 2008 marks the first commemoration of World Malaria Day, a day established in March 2007 at the Sixtieth World Health Assembly. It replaces Africa Malaria Day, which has been commemorated every year on 25 April since 2001. This day we commemorate the global effort to provide effective control of malaria around the world and to increase global awareness of this disease as a global scourge that is preventable and curable.

Joining forces for effective and sustainable malaria research
In order to increase effectiveness and sustainability of malaria research, EDCTP supports multicentre projects which combine clinical trials with capacity building and networking. EDCTP aims at integrating European programmes on malaria and other poverty related diseases (tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS) to work in synergy and in partnership with African programmes. This partnership is based on mutual respect and commitment whereby both partners from north and south have joint ownership and stewardship of the programme.

Current projects
In the fight against malaria EDCTP is currently supporting the following projects in Africa, totalling around €10 million of funding:

• Intravenous artesunate treatment for severe malaria in African children
  Countries involved: Gabon, Malawi, Ghana, Gambia, Kenya, Belgium, United Kingdom and Austria
• Three artemisinin-based combinations for uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria
  Countries involved: Uganda, Nigeria, Gabon, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Zambia, Rwanda, United Kingdom, Spain, France, Germany and Belgium
• Public health benefit of artemisinin based combination therapies for uncomplicated malaria
  Country involved: Mali
• Safety of artemisinin based combination therapies in children with uncomplicated malaria (Pharmacovigilance project)
  Countries involved: Uganda, Kenya, Gabon, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Zambia and Rwanda
• Investigation of effectiveness of Intermittent Preventive Treatment in Infants (IPTi) delivery through routine healthcare system
  Country involved: Senegal
• Investigation of molecular markers and mechanism of piperaquine and lumefantrine resistance
  Country Involved: Kenya
• Determination of the incidence of adverse drug reactions to antimalarials and anti-retrovirals in pregnancy taking place
  Country involved: Mozambique
• Identification of Plasmodium falciparum molecular markers that determine malaria severity
  Country involved: Cameroon

In the continuing fight against malaria, EDCTP has recently committed approximately a further €33 million, a sum that is expected to double with matching cofunding from EDCTP Member States. This will be used to fund projects on malaria treatment, pregnancy associated malaria and malaria vaccines. In addition EDCTP will continue to support infrastructure development at Africa research sites, training of African researchers and supporting a research enabling environment of regulatory and ethical framework.

For detailed information on EDCTP funded malaria research projects, please visit EDCTP's Project Profiles database.

For more information on malaria and World Malaria Day:
Website World Malaria Day 2008

Download the factsheet EDCTP joins forces to fight malaria

The EDCTP April 2008 Newsletter has been sent out, and is now also available on the website. This latest newsletter contains a full overview of current EDCTP calls for proposals, including two new grant programmes. It also announces a number of interesting new EDCTP projects, such as the Project Profiles database and the Key Performance Indicators. If you wish to receive the newsletter either in print of electronic format, please subscribe.

EDCTP is excited to announce the launch of its Project Profiles database. This online database contains summaries for all EDCTP-funded projects, and a range of search options to find any selection of projects requested. In the database, each project has its own summary,with an additional fact sheet on the project in layout that is easy to print. Currently, the database contains detailed information for the projects that were signed before 2007, but it will soon also include more elaborate information on the projects that were signed after that.

After the launch, the profiles will be updated on a regular basis, so as to provide insight into progress and results. Also, EDCTP is investigating additional search options like interactive maps.

EDCTP hopes that the database will be to the benefit of anyone intending to file an application in the future, and in a broader sense of everyone interested in EDCTP’s projects and activities.

Browse the Project Profiles database.

On this year’s World TB Day EDCTP joins the world by expressing its commitment of reducing poverty in developing countries by fighting TB. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that one-third of the world population is infected by the bacterium that causes TB, and that the majority of new TB cases occur in developing countries, especially in South-east Asia and in sub-Saharan Africa. Both the highest number of deaths and the highest mortality per capita are in Africa, although there is evidence that the epidemic in Africa has been slowing in the recent years and now appears to have stabilised or begun to fall. On the other hand, HIV is fuelling the TB epidemic and in Africa. HIV is the single most important factor contributing to the increase in incidence of TB since 1990. In some areas, control efforts are complicated by a dangerous form of drug-resistant TB that is multidrug-resistant (MDR-TB) or extensively drug-resistant (XDR TB). EDCTP’s key message therefore is: Stop TB by prevention and treatment.

EDCTP embraces the five key messages for 2008 World TB Day. Special attention goes to the following key message on developing new and more effective prevention and treatment:

We will never eliminate TB without new and more effective drugs, diagnostics and vaccines. Today’s most commonly used TB diagnostic, sputum microscopy, is more than 100 years old and lacks sensitivity. Today’s TB drugs are more than 40 years old and must be taken for six to nine months. Today’s TB vaccine, which is more than 85 years old, provides some protection against severe forms of TB in children but is unreliable against pulmonary TB. Simpler, faster drug regimens that treat all forms of TB; rapid, more accurate diagnostic tools to quickly detect TB; and a vaccine that will be effective in preventing TB in people of all ages are urgently needed.

EDCTP underlines the urgency of the above issues and is addressing them by joining various parties active in the field of TB prevention and treatment and funding their activities.

TB Vaccines
Currently the most effective vaccine is BCG (Bacille Calmette-Guérin). WHO recommends that to increase coverage all children in TB-endemic countries should receive this vaccine at birth. The downside of BCG are that (a) it does not prevent children from developing TB but it prevents serious diseases like TB meningitis, (b) it does not protect adults already infected with TB and (c) its protection is not lifelong. Therefore development of a more effective vaccine (whether new or a combination of new and BCG) is required.

However, since there is inadequate capacity and sites to conduct such trials, EDCTP is funding site preparation projects for the conduct of TB vaccine trials in Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Madagascar. In addition, EDCTP will support several new projects to conduct vaccine trials .

TB drugs
The current TB drugs requires patients to take large numbers of tablets per day and to continue taking them for at least 6 months, preferably taken under directly supervised treatment strategy (DOT) that WHO and IUATLD developed. The problem is that the large number of tablets and long duration of treatment reduces patient compliance. In addition, some of the drugs in the current combination interact with anti-retroviral treatment (ART), preventing patients to start both treatments together.

In the current brokered call for TB treatment proposals, EDCTP is developing a plan for TB drugs development aiming to simplify and shorten first-line treatment. A consortium of parties that have been working on the drug trials of the three anti-TB drugs has been formed, and funding of the project will commence in the course of 2008 after successful scientific and technical review of the proposed work.

TB diagnosis
Current TB diagnosis based on sputum examination is cheap but not very sensitive (i.e. some patients with TB are missed by the test). This is because of the nature of the test: it requires a specific number of bacteria to be present before the examiner can see them. In addition, HIV infection makes the number of bacteria in sputum scanty due to reduced immune response. This is an area that EDCTP will be addressing.

EDCTP funding of TB research
To date EDCTP has spent €10.5 M to fund trials in the following areas:

• Surrogate markers to predict the outcome of anti-tuberculosis therapy (South Africa)
• Rapid evaluation of moxifloxacin in the treatment of sputum smear positive tuberculosis (Tanzania, Zambia and South Africa)
• A controlled clinical trial to evaluate high dose rifapentine and moxifloxacin in the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis (South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe)
• Determining the optimal doses of antiretroviral and anti-tuberculosis medications when used in combination for the treatment of HIV/TB in co infected patients (South Africa)
• Optimisation of tuberculosis and HIV co-treatment in Africa looking at pharmacokinetic and pharmacogenetic aspects on drug-drug interactions between rifampicin and efavirenz (Ethiopia and Tanzania)

Approximately € 7.8 million have been spent on site preparedness and capacity building for TB vaccine trials in the following projects:  

• Prospective epidemiological studies of TB in neonates and adolescents in preparation for future vaccine trials in Karemo Division of Siaya district in Western Kenya
• Toward conducting phase III trials of novel TB vaccines in Ugandan infants and adolescents
• Capacity building for the conduct of ICH-GCP level TB vaccine trials in high risk populations in Ethiopia and East Africa.

Future TB plans
Between 2008 and 2010 EDCTP will spend €9 million on projects conducting phase ll and phase lll TB vaccine trials and €14 million on a project consisting of multiple consortia that conduct trials on different anti-TB agents that have been brought together into a clinical trial programme aimed at simplifying and shortening first-line treatment of drug-sensitive tuberculosis.

In addition EDCTP will continue to fund infrastructure development at African research sites, training of African researchers and supporting research enabling environment of regulatory and ethical framework.

More information on TB and World TB Day:

• World TB Day website
• Stop TB Partnership
• WHO Report 2008 Global tuberculosis control - surveillance, planning, financing
• International Union against TB and Lung Disease
• Article Tuberculosis – the tide can be turned, the battle can be won (Ali Zumla, J R Soc Med 2008; 101: 100-101)
• Download the EDCTP fact sheet for the World TB Day 2008.

In its quest for transparency and involvement of its stakeholders, EDCTP has now published online its first set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The KPIs provide an insight into EDCTPs progress and performance, and will be updated quarterly. They are taken across the range of EDCTP activities, from the number of clinical trials approved to the number of African institutions involved in EDCTP funded projects, and from the value of grants signed to actual expenditure breakdown. EDCTP invites all stakeholders to familiarise themselves with and monitor EDCTP's progress by visiting the KPIs webpage on the KPI webpage.

About Key Performance Indicators
Key Performance Indicators are quantifiable performance measurements used to measure progress against factors that are key to EDCTP’s success. EDCTP has identified KPIs to measure the success and progress of EDCTP to 2010. The KPIs cover all areas of activity for EDCTP, and are divided into four categories: grants, partnership, donors and governance. All KPIs are included in a chronological table, and have their own chart or graph which present them in a visual manner and often add details or cumulative information. EDCTP created the KPIs both for internal and external monitoring. As EDCTP recognises that numbers require interpretation, the KPIs will be developed over time and where necessary elaborated on by providing explanation and links to information relevant to a specific KPI.

Scholarships for the Distance Learning MSc Clinical Trials course (2008-2009) developed by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) are now open for application. The scholarships cover full tuition fees to study the course, and are available to students who are nationals of a sub-Saharan country only. Details on the scholarships and how to apply are available through the LSHTM website and the University of London website. Please note: do not file applications with EDCTP.

Every application sent to EDCTP should be accompanied by a budget form (in Excel) and a statement that the project can be carried out for the budget requested. Applicants planning to file a research proposal with EDCTP in response to the calls for proposals for HIV treatment, vaccines and microbicides are requested to use the new budget forms that were published on the respective call text pages on the website on 3 March.

EDCTP has launched a call for short proposals in support of general activities whitin the EDCTP scope. The purpose of this call is to support small projects that contributes to the mission of EDCTP. For more information on how to apply, please read the call text.

The EDCTP January 2008 Newsletter has been sent early January, and is now also available in French and Portuguese on the website. This latest newsletter updates you on the launch of three calls in the field of HIV/AIDS (treatment, microbicides and vaccines), the status of all calls launched in 2007, the brokering process for TB treatment and much more. If you wish to receive the newsletter either in print of electronic format, please subscribe.

EDCTP is now looking for candidates for the position of Grants Manager

The Grants Manager's primary responsibility is to oversee the administrative process for EDCTP's core business, which is to fund (but not sponsor) clinical trials. It is an administrative managerial position geared towards mid-level professionals with a scientific/clinical/research background. Applications will be accepted until 23 March 2008. Click on the Grants Manager vacancy page to see the full job description.

Between June and August 2008, the applications for EDCTP grants for HIV/AIDS treatment, vaccines and microbicides will be reviewed. EDCTP is looking for experts in the field of HIV/AIDS to be members of their Scientific Review Committees (SRCs) or to be External Reviewers (ER). To find out more or to submit an application, please visit the Call for experts on this website. As there will be several rounds of reviews of grant applications, we accept applications on a rolling basis.

The Developing Countries Coordination Committee (DCCC) of the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) is seeking four new members for a two-year tenure starting 1 January 2008. Read more >>

On 1 December 2007, EDCTP launched two calls for proposals: one for HIV treatment and one for microbicides. EDCTP is pleased to announce a third call in the area of HIV/AIDS:

Call for proposals on HIV vaccines
Title: Call for the support of clinical trials, capacity building and networking in HIV/AIDS vaccines development

The main objective of this call is to support the conduct of Phase I/II clinical trials of HIV candidate vaccines in African countries. Such studies should include safety and immunogenicity parameters and should ideally be designed to enable comparison of outcomes.

Available funds: A minimum of € 7,000,000*
Deadline of application: 30 May 2008
* We expect the EDCTP contribution of € 7,000,000 to be matched by at least an equivalent amount of cofunding from the Member States and possibly further contributions from third parties.

Click here for more information on this call

Every year on 1 December, the world commemorates World AIDS Day. Given that sub-Saharan Africa bears the brunt of this disease the current focus of EDCTP is in this region. EDCTP wishes to make a contribution to mitigating the effect of this disease by announcing funding opportunities for HIV/AIDS researchers. To commemorate the occasion EDCTP is happy to announce the launch of two calls for proposals; one on HIV/AIDS treatment and the other on microbicides (total € 12 M).

Call for proposal on HIV treatment
Title: Clinical trials, capacity building and networking for HIV/AIDS treatment in sub-Saharan Africa

The objectives of this call are:

i.   To support the conduct of clinical trials that evaluate second-line treatment strategies, with a focus on what products to switch to when changing from first to second-line treatment and when to switch.
ii.   To improve Antiretroviral therapy (ART) in children, with a specific focus on using more optional combinations and product formulations with sub-studies in pharmacokinetics of drug combinations.

Available funds: € 6,500,000
Deadline of application: 1 April 2008

Click here for more information on this call

Call for proposal on HIV microbicides
Title: Clinical trials, capacity building and networking for HIV/AIDS microbicides in sub-Saharan Africa

The objectives of this call are to support the conduct of clinical studies on microbicides that will yield data on safety, surrogate end-points of biological activity and surrogate markers that might correlate with safety or efficacy. In addition, proposals that evaluate the effect of barriers, concurrent sexually transmitted infections, frequency of microbicide use and stage of menstrual cycle on safety and efficacy are invited.
Innovative products or approaches are particularly encouraged.

Available funds: € 6,100,000
Deadline of application: 1 May 2008

Click here for more information on this call

Leadership in HIV prevention and treatment
EDCTP strongly supports Leadership as this year’s World AIDS Day’s theme. Strong African leadership is essential for sustainability of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. EDCTP aims to improve the overall environment for carrying out clinical trial activities in Africa and promote African leadership in the conduct of these trials. Therefore, training of personnel, adequate infrastructure capacity, ethics review mechanisms and regulatory framework for conducting quality clinical trials in sub-Saharan Africa are at the basis of all EDCTP-funded activities.

More information:

• Website World AIDS Day 2007 http://www.worldaidscampaign.info
• EDCTP Grants http://www.edctp.org/Current_Calls.115.0.html
• EDCTP disease specific strategy: HIV/AIDS http://www.edctp.org/Scope.12.0.html
  
  
  

To date EDCTP has launched around 30 calls for proposals in the field of HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, and committed to fund 74 projects that include clinical trials, capacity development and support of networks.

The 74 projects funded by EDCTP are divided as follows:

• 24 are HIV, malaria and tuberculosis clinical trials
• 24 are training awards (MSc, Senior Fellowships, PhDs and career development awards)
• 11 are for supporting networking activities
• 14 are on capacity building in ethics, and 1 for the establishment and maintenance of a clinical trials registry on HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

These projects are based in 21 different countries in sub-Saharan Africa and reflect the involvement of practically all European Member States.

Additionally, through a  grant to the World Health Organization (WHO) EDCTP is supporting strengthening of National Regulatory Authorities. This project has received cofunding from the Netherlands by the Netherlands-African Partnership for Capacity Development and Clinical Trials Intervention (NACCAP). It is being conducted through joint clinical trials application evaluation and clinical trials monitoring, training (Global Training Network) and establishment of the African Vaccines Regulators' Forum (AVAREF). EDCTP plans to follow up these activities with further funding to support their continuation as well as to map all ongoing capacity building activities on ethics and competent authority activities.

EDCTP's endeavour to work with like minded-organisations has led to the launch of a joint call with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on World AIDS Day 2006 (1 December). This call for capacity building in HIV vaccines yielded 6 excellent projects with four African project coordinators, study sites in 8 African countries and collaborative efforts of 8 Member States.

In addition to these ongoing projects, EDCTP has launched 8 new calls in 2007, and before the end of the year to commemorate World AIDS Day, plans to launch around that date an additional 3 calls in the critical areas of HIV vaccines, microbicides and treatment. The estimated EDCTP contribution towards all calls in 2007 is around € 90,000,000 with matching cofunding expected from Member States.

The Research Council of Norway (RCN) will, through the Programme for Global Health and Vaccination Research (GLOBVAC), make co-funding available for proposals with the participation of Norwegian research institutions in the upcoming EDCTP calls for proposals on vaccines development (malaria, TB and HIV).

Approximately 50 mill. NOK (6.3 mill. Euros) will be available from the RCN to support proposals with a maximum of approximately 10 mill. NOK (1.3 mill. Euros) each. The funding will be available for public and/or private Norwegian institutions that are part of proposals that are granted funding from EDCTP in these calls. The Research Council of Norway will subsequently evaluate and ultimately decide which projects to support and by which amount.

Proposals should be submitted using the EDCTP application forms and following the EDCTP guidelines and deadlines. A detailed budget should clearly indicate how the Norwegian co-funding is intended to be used. News about this opportunity is published on the GLOBVAC web sites www.rcn.no/globvac.  For details and the conditions that apply please contact the Norwegian ENO/GLOBVAC programme coordinator, kmaa(at)rcn.no.

The Netherlands-African partnership for capacity development and clinical interventions against poverty-related diseases (NACCAP) has announced that it will provide €3,000,000 in cofunding for the EDCTP Call for Proposals for Regional Networks of Excellence in sub-Saharan Africa.

Applicants wishing to apply for cofunding from NACCAP should make early contact with the EDCTP’s Dutch European Networking Officer (ENO) using the contact ENO form.

Eligible proposals received by EDCTP that request NACCAP cofunding will be assessed by the NACCAP Programme Committee, ranked for NACCAP cofunding and submitted to the NACCAP Steering Committee who will advise EDCTP of which proposals it is prepared to cofund. Proposals which include a NACCAP awarded research site or group in their proposed network will be preferred for cofunding by NACCAP.

100% of the NACCAP cofunding will be directed to African citizens and/or research infrastructure in Africa and this will be verified from the annual and final reports. Please note, however, that NACCAP will only fund up to 50% of the permanent personnel costs.

While NACCAP has no obligations, responsibilities or liabilities other than providing this cofunding through EDCTP, all publications and/or presentations from projects receiving NACCAP funding should mention that this support has been provided by the Netherlands-African partnership for capacity development and clinical interventions against poverty-related diseases.

EDCTP is organising a networking meeting of potential applicants (institutions) for its call of proposals for establishing regional networks of excellence. This follows a recommendation from the stakeholders’ meeting preceding this which proposed that there should be an opportunity for regional discussions for planning joint proposals. The meeting will take place on 20 September 2007 at the EDCTP Africa Office situated at the Medical Research Council in Cape Town, South Africa. EDCTP, through the Developing Countries Coordinating Committee (DCCC) is drawing participating institution from all regions of Africa to this meeting. Besides a general meeting, participants will be split into regional working groupings of Eastern, Western Central and Southern Africa. It should be noted that response to this call is not limited to institutions represented at this meeting. Anyone who feels their institution is in the process of applying to the call and needs to be involved in the meeting should contact Dr Thomas Nyirenda, South-south Networking Manager of EDCTP via the email address nyirenda(at)edctp.org or telephone number +27219380346.

Through funding provided by the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), The Viral Load group in the Viral Diseases Programme of the Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratories in Banjul, Gambia is organizing a one-week Training/Workshop in the use of their in-house HIV viral load assay.

Date:     Monday-Friday, September 24-28, 2007
Venue:  The Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), Nairobi, Kenya

Target Audience: Scientists/Technicians in the East, Central & Southern Africa currently using commercial/in-house assays in HIV viral load monitoring of patients on anti-retroviral treatment (ART), i.e. those on the bench and with potentials to try out our assay in their respective settings.

What will be provided: Course materials, return air ticket, accommodation, & a token to cover living expenses in Nairobi.

Mode of Application: Interested potential participants should send by email (1) an application and (2) abridged CV (max 2 pages) to the course coordinator, Dr Abraham S. Alabi using this address: aalabi@mrc.gm. Deadline for receipt of application is Friday August 24 2007. Successful applicants will be notified in the third/fourth week of August.

EDCTP is happy to announce the launch of a new set of calls in August. These calls complete the full set of calls that are launched as a result of the Stakeholder meetings held in May and June 2007. The following calls are currently open for application:

Malaria

• Clinical trials, capacity development and networking in Malaria vaccines development (launched 6 July)
• Clinical trials, capacity development and networking in Malaria treatment
• Clinical trials, capacity development and networking in Malaria in pregnancy

Tuberculosis

• Clinical trials, capacity development and networking in Tuberculosis vaccines development (launched 6 July)
• Phase I, II and III clinical trials on new drugs and improved drug combinations for the treatment of tuberculosis

Cross-cutting capacity building activities

• Senior Fellowship (launched 6 July)
• Establishment and strengthening of African National Ethics Committees or Institutional Review Boards
• Establishment of regional networks of excellence with a particular focus on increasing the number of sites that can conduct multicentre clinical trials and provide mentorship programmes

For more information about these calls and how to apply, please consult the For Grant Seekers section on our website.

The EDCTP July newsletter has been sent out and is now also available on the website. It contains important information on among others:

• Upcoming EDCTP calls for proposals in July and August
• Outcomes of Stakeholder meetings which were held in May and June
• Articles on EDCTP funded projects (ATM Clinical Trials Registry, Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training course, Workshop for Project and Data Management for Clinical Trials)
• Site visit to Zimbabwe

The news letter is available on the website in three languages (English, French and Portuguese). If you wish to receive a print version of the news letter, please Subscribe your address information.

EDCTP is happy to announce that the following calls have been launched on July 6:

• Clinical trials, capacity development and networking in Malaria vaccines and Tuberculosis vaccines
• Senior Fellowships

Please consult For Grant Seekers on this website for detailed information on how to apply.

The following calls will be launched later this summer:

• Malaria treatment and Malaria in pregnancy clinical trials, capacity development and networking
• Regional networks of excellence for conducting clinical trials in sub-Saharan Africa.

In addition EDCTP will announce a brokering initiative in the field of Tuberculosis treatment. An alert will be sent out at the actual launch date.

All calls will be open for applications for a period of at least 4 months. With the exception of the call for support of Senior Fellowships, all calls are based on the main recommendations of the EDCTP stakeholder meetings on these topics that were held earlier this year.

The report of EDCTP’s 3rd Forum meeting, which took place last year in Stockholm Sweden, is now available online. The theme for the third forum was: Partnership and African Leadership: Challenges and Opportunities. This theme emphasises the fundamental goal of EDCTP to enable European scientists to join forces through a structured network, and to work together in partnership with African scientists to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis as a means of poverty reduction. Strong African leadership is essential for identifying research capacity gaps, prioritisation of research problems, setting up of the required appropriate research agenda, facilitation of translation of research findings into control measures, and assurance of the programme sustainability well beyond the current framework. Furthermore, it will create a true sense of partnership, commitment and ownership. During the Forum meeting, the focus was on the following sub-themes:

1. Building capacity in scientific skills and leadership in Africa: strategies and experiences
2. Networking within the partnership

Download the EDCTP 3rd Forum report (PDF - 2.39MB) now.

The first EDCTP Investigators Meeting took place at the Medical Research Centre (MRC) in Cape Town on 24 - 25 July 2006. The goal was to establish south-south networks, coordination and synergy among researchers. There were 88 participants: 43 African scientists, 9 collaborators from research institutions in the north, 13 invited guests, 15 members of EDCTP constituencies and 8 members of the EDCTP secretariat. The meeting concluded with recommendations to extend funding for promising senior fellowship projects, reinforce capacity building (personnel, ethics and regulatory bodies), strengthen South – South and North – South networking, accredit sites conducting trials in Africa and foster collaboration with policy makers.

Download the Investigators Meeting report (PDF - 9.12MB)

Every year on 25 April, Africa commemorates Malaria Day in order to remind the world community that this scourge still ravages our lives, impeding efforts to undertake the development challenges of the twenty-first century. The European and Developing countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) identifies fully with these concerns, and wishes to make a real contribution to battling this disease by announcing funding opportunities for malaria researchers.

Africa Malaria Day
On the 25 April 2000, the first Summit of African leaders from 44 malaria-endemic countries took place in Abuja, Nigeria. To stress the burden of malaria on the continent, the leaders declared that 25 April each year would be commemorated as Africa Malaria Day. Furthermore, the historic Abuja Declaration was signed, committing governments to an intensive effort to halve the burden of malaria in Africa by 2010 and setting interim targets for the year 2005.

In the run up to 25 April 2007 and on Africa Malaria Day itself, many countries in Africa have organised events and activities. In Europe, coalitions and alliances against malaria will be advocating in Parliaments. The malaria community of the United States will be highlighting this day with the first Malaria Awareness Day.

The burden of malaria in Africa poses many questions: Is there any hope on the horizon? How do we convince the African mother who sees her child dying of malaria that African researchers are doing all that they can to move this issue up the global agenda? How do we convince young African students that taking up a career of research into malaria is important?

EDCTP funding for research into malaria vaccines and malaria drug treatment
The response of the European and Developing countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) is simple and pragmatic: the existing national European and African health research programs have to be strengthened and integrated. EDCTP aims to improve the overall environment for carrying out clinical trial activities in Africa and promote African leadership in the conduct of these trials. With regard to malaria, the following thematic topics have been identified as priorities for EDCTP funding:

Malaria vaccines:

• Malaria vaccines for the protection of young children.

A major challenge in developing an effective malaria vaccine has been producing a vaccine which confers enough protection for having an impact on morbidity and mortality. This vaccine should offer protection against the multiple forms of malaria parasites. In May 2007, a call for proposals to support phase II clinical trials of malaria vaccines in sub-Saharan Africa will be launched with an amount of up to € 14,500,000.

Antimalarial drugs:

• Treatment of uncomplicated and drug-resistant falciparum malaria
• Treatment of severe malaria
• Treatment of malaria in pregnant women

In June, two stakeholder meetings on malaria drug treatment for uncomplicated malaria and for pregnant women will be held in Vienna, Austria. Stakeholder meetings are an essential step in establishing the EDCTP strategy for funding one or more research projects through a call or brokering procedure. The objectives of stakeholder meetings are to identify and prioritise potential products in the pipeline, and to identify suitable sites to carry out the clinical trials in Africa. The EDCTP funding allocated for the treatment of uncomplicated and drug-resistant falciparum malaria and the treatment of malaria in pregnant women is approximately € 18,000,000. Clinical trials on the treatment of severe malaria are already an on-going EDCTP activities.

More information:

• Website Africa Malaria Day 2007
• Multilateral Initiative on Malaria (MIM)
• EDCTP Grants
• EDCTP Stakeholder meetings

Following the success of EDCTP's Third Annual Forum in 2006, we would like to announce that the Fourth Annual Forum will be held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso between the 22-24th October 2007. Preparations are currently underway, updates will follow on the website and newsletter as they happen.