The UK Department of Health and Social Care’s aid-funded global health research and innovation

Purpose, scope and rationale Global health research aims to advance knowledge and innovation to improve health outcomes and achieve health equity globally, with a particular focus on the needs and priorities of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).1 This area of research grew significantly in scale and importance globally during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has become more central to the stra. [...] The review is an opportunity to revisit and build on previous ICAI reviews, including the 2018 review of the UK’s response to global health threats 3 and research-focused reviews such as those of the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF)4 and the Newton Fund.5 It is also relevant to ICAI’s COVID-19 reviews, although these did not specifically focus on research and innovation funded through DHSC.6. [...] The DHSC ODA budget for research increased again after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, even when the overall UK ODA budget was effectively cut by 29%, as it was diverted to support asylum seekers and refugees in the UK.17 Figure 1: DHSC ODA expenditure on global health research 2018-19 to 2024-25 In the time period covered by this review, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). [...] Benefits to low- and middle-income countries also take the form of health research capacity development, such as training, the sharing of knowledge and intellectual property, and the transfer of technologies. [...] The case studies assessed the DHSC global health research portfolio in each country, collecting and analysing evidence on the relevance and effectiveness of DHSC-funded research projects, and the extent to which learning from different country contexts was documented and applied by DHSC.