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WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants 2026–2027: Up to US$15,000 for Implementation Research in Africa

Muhammad Chishti
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The World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa and TDR have opened applications for the 2026–2027 Joint WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants for Implementation Research for Regional Priorities.

The programme will provide funding of up to US$15,000 per selected project to support public health-oriented implementation research in the WHO African Region. Proposed studies must address practical barriers affecting the delivery, scale-up, sustainability or impact of existing health interventions, particularly those connected with infectious diseases of poverty.

The funding is aimed at researchers and institutions capable of producing actionable evidence that can strengthen health systems, improve access to essential interventions and translate research findings into policy and practice. Proposals may address person-centred primary healthcare, digital transformation, climate-sensitive diseases, antimicrobial resistance, One Health, emergency preparedness and other specified regional priorities.

Applications must be submitted through the eTDR platform by 15 September 2026. The official summary and WHO AFRO’s public announcement give the deadline as 17:00 CEST. Applicants should use the earlier CEST interpretation and submit well ahead of the closing time. Official WHO AFRO call

WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants 2026–2027 at a Glance

Item Details
Programme Joint WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants for Implementation Research for Regional Priorities
Call reference CA26-0033
Organizers WHO Regional Office for Africa and TDR
TDR co-sponsors UNICEF, UNDP, World Bank and WHO
Maximum funding Up to US$15,000 per grant
Required research location WHO African Region
Maximum study duration 12 months
Final completion requirement Project must be completed by the end of 2027
No-cost extension Not permitted
Application languages English, French or Portuguese
Submission method Online through the eTDR Community Site
Application deadline 15 September 2026
Safest closing-time interpretation 17:00 CEST, equivalent to 15:00 UTC
Selection basis Scientific excellence, public health impact and implementation plan
Results notification Expected within three months after the deadline
Co-funding Encouraged from domestic or other sources
Publication requirement WHO Open Access Policy applies

About WHO AFRO and TDR

The WHO Regional Office for Africa, commonly known as WHO AFRO, is responsible for WHO’s work with Member States assigned to the African Region.

TDR is the UNICEF/UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases. It supports research and strengthens research capacity to address infectious diseases of poverty and associated global health challenges.

The Impact Grants are implemented jointly by TDR and WHO regional offices. Projects are carried out by researchers in developing countries, while the regional offices help implement and manage the grants. Implementation research has been the central focus of the scheme since 2014. TDR Impact Research Grants Scheme

The 2026–2027 call aligns with the TDR Strategy 2024–2029, which focuses on building locally led research solutions to improve global health. It seeks to strengthen health systems, improve access to interventions and respond to challenges such as climate change, infectious disease threats and pandemics. TDR Strategy 2024–2029

Why the WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants Are Important

The WHO African Region continues to face persistent health-system weaknesses that affect the availability, accessibility, quality and sustainability of health services.

New drugs, vaccines, diagnostics and other health technologies remain important. However, developing an effective intervention does not automatically ensure that it reaches the people who need it.

Implementation barriers may include:

Implementation research examines these practical problems. It seeks to understand why proven interventions are not working as intended in a particular context and what changes could make their delivery more effective, equitable, scalable and sustainable.

TDR’s implementation research materials emphasize identifying system bottlenecks and relevant stakeholders, formulating appropriate research questions, conducting the study and preparing a plan for putting the findings into practice. TDR Implementation Research Training Materials

Main Objectives of the Impact Grants

The 2026–2027 Impact Grants have three principal objectives.

1. Strengthening Research Capacity

The programme seeks to strengthen the capacity of relevant researchers, health professionals and institutions to conduct operational and implementation research.

The funding is intended to help build sustainable country-level research capacity rather than support research that is disconnected from national health priorities.

2. Producing Actionable and Context-Specific Evidence

Projects should generate findings that countries can use to:

A successful proposal should demonstrate how its findings could lead to practical action rather than ending only as an academic publication.

3. Encouraging Intersectoral Dialogue and One Health

The programme encourages cooperation among health authorities, researchers, communities and institutions working in related sectors.

One Health approaches recognize the relationship between human health, animal health and the shared environment. Projects addressing zoonotic diseases, climate-sensitive infections, antimicrobial resistance or emerging threats may therefore require collaboration beyond the traditional health sector.

Research Priority One: Person-Centred Service Delivery Across the Life Course

The first priority supports implementation research that helps health systems move away from fragmented and isolated disease programmes toward integrated, person-centred primary healthcare.

Research should examine how services addressing infectious diseases of poverty can be integrated into comprehensive healthcare models that respond to people’s needs throughout their lives.

Potential areas include:

Communicable Diseases

Research may focus on the implementation and integration of interventions relating to:

Projects should not merely describe the burden of disease. They should examine a practical implementation challenge and test or assess a strategy for improving service delivery.

Referral Systems

Research could investigate:

Continuity of Care

Relevant questions may include how health systems can maintain continuous care for patients with long-term or recurring conditions and how communicable disease services can be integrated with maternal, child, adolescent or adult healthcare.

Quality Improvement Within Integrated Models

Projects may assess practical strategies for improving service quality when previously separate programmes are combined within person-centred primary healthcare.

Scalable and Sustainable Innovations

Proposals may examine whether an innovation can:

Research Priority Two: Health-Systems Strengthening, Innovation and Digital Transformation

The second priority focuses on systemic barriers that limit the scale, sustainability and impact of interventions for controlling or eliminating infectious diseases.

Access to Essential Medicines

Projects may investigate implementation barriers affecting:

Diagnostics and Laboratory Strengthening

Research could address:

Health Supply Chains

Potential studies may focus on forecasting, procurement, inventory control, distribution, stock-outs, data visibility or coordination among institutions responsible for health commodities.

Quality-of-Care Improvement

Projects may test or evaluate strategies for improving:

Digital Health and Health Information Systems

Relevant implementation research may address:

The call refers specifically to appropriate AI-supported tools. A proposal should therefore demonstrate that the proposed technology addresses a defined health-system problem and can be implemented responsibly in the local context.

Innovative Service-Delivery Models

Proposals may assess new ways of organizing or delivering health services, provided that they address an implementation problem and are relevant to infectious diseases of poverty.

Emergency Preparedness Integration

Projects can examine how emergency preparedness and response functions can be integrated into routine health systems rather than operating only during a crisis.

Community-System Strengthening

Research may explore how community health workers, local organizations, civil society and community structures can improve programme implementation, surveillance, service uptake, accountability or continuity of care.

Cross-Sector Collaboration

Projects may investigate how health authorities can work more effectively with environmental, agricultural, veterinary, education, technology or local government institutions.

Research Priority Three: Environmental Health, Climate Change, One Health and Emerging Threats

The third priority addresses the environmental, ecological and multisectoral factors influencing infectious diseases of poverty.

Climate-Sensitive Diseases

Projects may examine how climate variability and environmental change affect disease transmission, service demand, programme delivery or community vulnerability.

Research can also test community-based adaptation strategies that help populations and health systems prepare for climate-related health risks.

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

Projects may address the integration of water, sanitation and hygiene interventions into primary healthcare, disease-control programmes or community health systems.

Antimicrobial Resistance

Research may focus on:

Zoonotic and Emerging Diseases

One Health projects may examine how human health, animal health and environmental institutions can work together to prevent, detect and respond to zoonotic and emerging or re-emerging diseases.

Surveillance, Preparedness and Response

Implementation research may assess strategies for strengthening:

Funding Amount and Financial Conditions

Each selected project may receive up to US$15,000.

Applicants should understand that “up to US$15,000” is a maximum limit rather than a guaranteed award amount. The proposed budget should reflect the actual cost of the study and must be expressed in United States dollars.

Domestic or external co-funding is encouraged. However, the official call does not describe co-funding as a mandatory eligibility condition.

The public announcement does not specify:

Applicants should use the prescribed application form and request clarification from WHO where a proposed expense may be uncertain.

Project Duration

The maximum study duration is 12 months.

In addition to the 12-month limit:

A technically ambitious project that cannot realistically be completed within the available budget and timeframe is unlikely to present a strong implementation plan.

Detailed Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must meet all applicable conditions.

Application Language

The proposal and Principal Investigator information must be submitted in one of the following languages:

Geographic Location of the Research

The proposed study must be conducted in the WHO African Region.

Institutional Base

The Principal Investigator and most members of the research team must be based at an institution in a WHO African Region country or territory.

Eligible institutional settings may include:

Alignment with the Call

The research must relate directly to the objectives, scope and priority areas of the call.

Implementation or Operational Research Experience

Applicants must demonstrate relevant experience in operational or implementation research and the ability to conduct research independently.

Evidence may include:

The call does not prescribe a particular university degree, academic rank, age limit or minimum number of years of experience. The decisive requirement is credible evidence of implementation or operational research capacity.

Authorization for Research in a Health Centre

If the proposed research will be implemented in a health centre, the application requires an authorization letter from the relevant public health manager or director.

Programme Acknowledgement Letter

The proposal must include an acknowledgement letter signed by the manager of the programme area or the person responsible for the programme connected with the research.

The signatory may be based at:

This letter is important because the call is intended to support implementation research connected with real health programmes and decision-makers.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

WHO AFRO and TDR encourage eligible researchers to apply irrespective of:

Applications are particularly encouraged from:

These groups are encouraged, but the call does not state that eligibility is restricted to them.

Selection Process

Applications will be assessed competitively by external reviewers and staff from WHO AFRO and TDR.

The three stated scoring areas are:

Scientific Excellence

Reviewers will assess whether the research question, methodology, analysis and overall scientific approach are sound and appropriate.

Public Health Impact

The proposal should explain how the results could improve health programmes, strengthen systems, address infectious diseases of poverty or inform policy and practice.

Project Implementation Plan

The proposal should present a credible work plan, timeline, management approach, budget and strategy for completing the project within 12 months and before the end of 2027.

Principal Investigators are expected to be informed of the results within three months after the application deadline.

Ethical Approval

Funding is conditional on obtaining ethical approval from the relevant research ethics committees in the WHO African Region and the country where the study will be conducted.

The WHO application instructions also list ethical approval among the documents to be combined into the final application PDF. Applicants should therefore initiate the ethics process early and confirm exactly what approval or evidence must accompany the initial submission.

Ethical review should not be treated as an administrative formality. A strong proposal should address:

Application Documents

Applicants should prepare the following materials.

1. Completed and Signed Research Proposal Form

The prescribed WHO form must be used. It must be completed fully and signed appropriately.

WHO states that applications that do not fully complete the required proposal form will not be considered for funding.

2. Principal Investigator’s Curriculum Vitae

The PI’s CV must not exceed one page.

It should clearly provide:

A standard multi-page academic CV should not be uploaded without first adapting it to these requirements.

3. Project Budget

The project costing must be included and expressed in United States dollars.

The budget should align with:

4. Ethical Approval

The required ethics documentation should be included as directed by the call and applicable ethics committees.

5. Acknowledgement Letter

The application requires the signed acknowledgement letter from the appropriate programme manager or responsible health-service official.

6. Health-Centre Authorization Letter

If the research will be implemented in a health centre, obtain authorization from its public health manager or director.

How to Apply for the WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants

Step 1: Read the Complete Official Call

Review the official WHO AFRO announcement, research priorities, eligibility rules and required supporting documents.

Step 2: Create or Access an eTDR Account

Applications must be submitted through the official eTDR application portal.

Existing users should sign in. New users must create an account before beginning the submission.

Applicants should create the account early enough to resolve registration, password or portal-access problems before the deadline.

Step 3: Download the Correct Application Form

Official forms are available in three languages:

Step 4: Complete and Sign the Proposal

Every mandatory field should be completed. Do not substitute an independently designed proposal for the official form.

Step 5: Finalize the Budget

Prepare the budget in US dollars and make sure the costs are reasonable, necessary and directly connected with the proposed activities.

Step 6: Obtain the Required Letters and Approvals

Secure the programme acknowledgement letter, health-centre authorization where applicable and ethics documentation.

Step 7: Prepare the One-Page PI CV

Reduce the CV to one page while retaining every item specifically required by WHO.

Step 8: Combine Everything Into One PDF

The following documents must be combined into a single PDF:

Do not upload the documents as separate files unless the portal specifically instructs otherwise.

Step 9: Name the PDF Correctly

The filename must use the applicant’s name followed by “SGS2026.”

WHO provides the following example:

SmithJ_SGS2026.pdf

Applicants should use a similarly clear format based on the PI’s family name and initial.

Step 10: Upload and Submit Through eTDR

Upload the final PDF, complete all portal fields and formally submit the application before the deadline.

Saving a draft is not the same as submitting an application. Applicants should verify that the portal records the application as submitted and retain any confirmation or reference number.

Application Deadline and Time-Zone Warning

The application deadline is:

15 September 2026 at 17:00 CEST

This is equivalent to 15:00 UTC.

The call’s summary and WHO AFRO’s official social announcement use CEST. One paragraph in the detailed application section uses CET, which differs by one hour. To avoid any risk, applicants should treat 17:00 CEST as the controlling deadline and submit earlier. WHO AFRO official deadline announcement

Practical Tips for a Strong Application

The following recommendations are based on the stated evaluation criteria and application requirements.

Define a Genuine Implementation Problem

Do not submit a proposal that only measures disease prevalence or describes a public health problem. Explain what intervention already exists, what implementation barrier is preventing impact and how the study will generate evidence to address that barrier.

Demonstrate Policy or Programme Relevance

Involve the responsible health programme or service manager early. The acknowledgement-letter requirement signals that institutional ownership and policy relevance are important.

Select One Clear Priority Area

The proposal should align convincingly with at least one of the three priorities. Avoid adding unrelated themes simply to make the project appear broader.

Keep the Study Feasible

The project must fit within:

A focused study with a realistic implementation pathway is likely to be stronger than an overly ambitious multi-country project.

Explain the Expected Public Health Impact

Show who will use the findings, how the evidence will reach decision-makers and what programme or policy decision the research could influence.

Include Knowledge Translation

Build dissemination and evidence-use activities into the work plan rather than treating publication as the only final output.

Address Equity and Community Engagement

Explain how the study will consider underserved groups, gender, disability, geographic inequalities and community perspectives where relevant.

Prepare Ethics and Authorization Documents Early

Waiting until the final days to obtain signatures or institutional approvals creates a serious risk of an incomplete application.

Check the Final PDF Carefully

Before submission, confirm that:

Publication and Data Requirements

Publications and data produced through funded projects must comply with the WHO Policy on Open Access.

Outputs should clearly acknowledge support from the WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants for Regional Priorities and include the relevant grant number.

WHO’s policy generally seeks to ensure that WHO-funded research outputs are freely accessible and reusable. It also addresses the deposit of research data in appropriate repositories. Applicants should consider publication, data management and open-access requirements while preparing the study budget and dissemination plan. WHO Policy on Open Access

Official Contact Information

For questions about the call:

For technical problems involving the eTDR portal:

Applicants should use the technical contacts only for portal-related problems and direct programme or eligibility questions to the call contacts.

Conclusion

The 2026–2027 Joint WHO AFRO/TDR Impact Grants provide an important funding opportunity for researchers and public health institutions seeking to solve practical health-service and implementation problems in the WHO African Region.

With funding of up to US$15,000, the programme can support focused implementation research on person-centred primary healthcare, infectious diseases of poverty, health-system strengthening, digital transformation, climate-sensitive diseases, antimicrobial resistance, One Health and emerging public health threats.

A competitive application will need more than a relevant topic. It must define a clear implementation problem, demonstrate scientific quality, explain its potential public health impact, involve the appropriate health programme and present a realistic plan that can be delivered within 12 months.

Eligible applicants should begin by selecting the appropriate research priority, securing programme support and ethical documentation, preparing the required one-page CV and completing the prescribed application form. The complete application must be combined into one correctly named PDF and submitted through the eTDR portal before 15 September 2026 at 17:00 CEST.

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