Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India recently signed an MoU with the African Union (AU) represented by Scientific Technical and Research Commission (AU-STRC) in New Delhi.

The MoU will strengthen South-South collaboration in advancing health sciences research; enhance local capacity and ownership. Recognizing the common health challenges faced by limited public health resources the current initiative aspires to intensify cooperation and collaboration to develop cutting-edge, innovative and sustainable solutions catering to the health needs of respective regions of the globe.

The programme would focus on training and strengthening capacity of health professionals, researchers, regulators and industry staff; support research collaborations for developing preventive tools and improved diagnostics for diseases which are regional priorities in India and Africa strengthening product development and manufacturing capacities for drugs and diagnostics.

Dr. Balram Bhargava, Secretary DHR and DG, ICMR said that this MoU is a major step to help enrich global health research and stitch it to regional needs of India and Africa. The deliberations charted through series of discussions with leading experts will ensure advancements in strategic and multifaceted regional cooperation to optimize available resources towards contesting shared challenges in health sciences.