November 4th 2008
Looking for a distraction from the US elections?
As the world holds its breath for the outcome of the US elections, what could possibly distract us from this very important day? A report , Monitoring Financial Flows for Health Research 2008, published yesterday by the Global Forum on Health Research deserves to have at least few minutes of our attention. I have outlined the salient points below but please refer to the report if you want to find out more.
Rhona MacDonald
- The Global Forum for Health Research is introducing a regular Report Card as part of Monitoring Financial Flows 2008 - which was launched yesterday at the Wellcome Trust in London -to track progress towards the implementation of global targets, commitments and aspirations relevant to R&D for health.
- The report reveals global expenditure on health research in 2005 was US$ 160.3 billion - the greatest sum ever spent on health research, up from US$ 125.8 billion in 2003. Yet despite the high investment levels research is failing to address the significant health needs of low- and middle-income countries.
- Millions of people are still suffering and dying each year from diseases that disproportionately affect poor populations. As health challenges in the developing world become increasingly diverse and complex it is important that a wide spectrum of health research is conducted to meet disparate challenges.
- The report card approach measures the performance and aspirations of all countries but also includes additional categories for high income countries, low and middle income countries, and Global Health Initiatives and development agencies.
