Research Agreements with UK Research Councils
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Print Current PageBBSRC/DFID Joint Funding Scheme
DFID and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) have announced a new scheme to fund biosciences research that provides answers on how to increase agricultural productivity and food security so as to make significant differences to the lives of poor people in Africa and Asia. The scheme responds to demand from developing countries for increased focus on science and technology to tackle development problems (see the Framework for African Agricultural Productivity - FAAP).
The scheme has a budget of £6 million over four years and will provide research grants to UK and non-UK researchers to undertake strategic research that contributes to growth and poverty reduction in developing countries. The first research call will focus on crop sciences.
This scheme is one of the new initiatives being implemented under DFID’s £100 million Strategy for Research on Sustainable Agriculture, announced in March this year. The scheme builds upon DFID’s and BBSRC’s strengths in development and scientific research. DFID currently spends 4% of its development budget on research, placing it in the top three bilateral donors, and over the last three decades supported research on new technologies and ideas to help achieve poverty reduction. BBSRC is the UK’s largest funder of basic and strategic biological research, investing around £350 million annually, and has supported development related research at UK universities and its sponsored institutes. By combining this experience BBSRC and DFID will support research which meets the needs of poor people, and helps builds the research capacity of developing countries.
ESRC/DFID Joint Research Funding Scheme
DFID-ESRC scheme record
In 2005 the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and DFID's Central Research Department announced a new, strategic joint funding scheme to promote social science research that addresses poverty reduction. The scheme represents a new way of working and will strengthen collaboration between the research council and the DFID. The scheme is open to both UK and non-UK institutions. Please note ESRC is administering the scheme and any enquiries should be addressed to Steve Morgan at his e-mail address steve.morgan@esrc.ac.uk
DFID/MRC Concordat
DFID/MRC Concordat record
The concordat agreement between DFID and the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) is the basis of a partnership that supports UK-led biomedical and public health research to tackle the priority health problems of poor people in developing countries. Under the concordat DFID provides a grant to the MRC of the order of £4m per year to augment its own support for projects and programmes in line with an agreed strategy relevant to the needs of poorer countries. DFID is consulted on the development of MRC’s strategy and is represented on MRC’s Physiological Medicine and Infections Board and relevant sub-committees.
DFID reviews the MRC’s portfolio of research on health in developing countries on an annual basis and commissions evaluations periodically. Since 1992, when the concordat first came into effect, these reviews and evaluations have consistently concluded that this partnership delivers high-quality knowledge in a cost effective manner.