GSK injects Ksh568m into medical research

GSK has launched the first call for proposals for its Africa NCD Open Lab to support scientific research on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Africa. Up to Ksh568 million will be available in this first round of funding to support successful proposals from researchers in Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Ghana, The Gambia, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda and Malawi.

The Africa NCD Open Lab was established by GSK earlier this year, with a commitment of Ksh 3.5 billion funding over five years, as part of a series of strategic investments in sub-Saharan Africa. In this region, and across developing countries, non-communicable diseases, such as cancer and diabetes, are becoming more prevalent.

The Africa NCD Open Lab aims to address this through the creation of an innovative research network that will see GSK scientists collaborate with researchers across the continent on high quality epidemiological, genetic and interventional research, from its hub at GSK’s Stevenage R&D facility in the UK. The will specifically inform interventions for the prevention and treatment of five priority diseases – cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and chronic respiratory disease – while helping build local expertise and creating a new generation of African NCD experts.

This builds on the success of GSK’s Open Lab in Tres Cantos, Spain, which provides independent researchers access to GSK facilities, resources and knowledge to help them advance research into diseases of the developing world such as malaria, tuberculosis and leishmaniasis.

“We believe the highly collaborative research network we’re creating through the Africa NCD Open Lab has the potential to dramatically improve understanding of NCDs in Africa – and could ultimately, accelerate the development of new, better medicines to treat these,” said Dr Mike Strange, Interim Head of Africa NCD Open Lab. “We encourage researchers working in the field of NCDs who are based in the eight eligible countries to consider applying for the funding and expert support available to them through this.”