Grand Challenges is a family of initiatives fostering innovation to solve key global health and development problems. Each initiative is an experiment in the use of challenges to focus innovation on making an impact. Individual challenges address some of the same problems, but from differing perspectives.

Challenges

<h2>Background</h2><p>Artificial Intelligence (AI) has significant potential to transform healthcare around the world. But as AI technology continues to advance, there is an urgent need to position low- and middle-income countries<a href="#_ftn1" title="" id="_ftnref1" name="_ftnref1"><strong><sup>[i]</sup></strong></a> (LMICs) to lead on the design and co-creation of AI-enabled technologies – thereby helping to improve the health and well-being of their women, children, and vulnerable communities. Through this call for proposal, we are emphasizing AI solutions that are locally driven and owned hence more relevant to address the needs of people they intend to serve and more likely to be accepted and used by local communities.</p><p>Responsible global use of AI entails a safe, equitable, transparent, reliable, and beneficial process that is adhered to with a high level of accountability. As the world rapidly moves to seize AI's opportunities, it is imperative to monitor and mitigate the safety, ethical, equity, and reliability dimensions of AI deployment. This will allow the enormous resilience, creativity, and commitment of researchers, scientists, and policymakers to capture the full capability of AI for lasting good.</p><p>Grand Challenges (GC) partners including GC Brazil, GC Ethiopia, GC India, GC Senegal, GC South Africa, and GC Africa (pan-African), along with the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation, the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, and the Pasteur Network, have jointly discussed the need for an equitable and responsible approach to the use of AI and specifically Large Language Models (LLMs) in LMICs. This call by the various GC partners is a follow-up to the initial call by the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation representing collaborative steps towards identifying, nurturing, and catalyzing the creativity, energy, and skills that researchers, implementers, governments, and technical partners have demonstrated in solving specific challenges in their countries and regions through LLMs. We are optimistic that this family of related AI RFPs will provide a platform for potentially transformative solutions to improve the lives and conditions for numerous vulnerable communities.</p><p><em>Note that this request for proposals is being launched by six Grand Challenges partners: African researchers located in Ethiopia, Senegal, and South Africa, should apply through the corresponding country specific Grand Challenges portal; African researchers located in all other African countries should apply through the Grand Challenges Africa portal; Brazilian researchers located in Brazilian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges Brazil portal; and Indian researchers located in Indian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges India portal. Eligible Pasteur Network sites located in Africa should apply through Grand Challenges Africa and Pasteur Network sites located in Brazil should apply through Grand Challenges Brazil. All other eligible Pasteur Network sites (not located in Africa or Brazil) should apply through Grand Challenges Senegal. Please consult the information provided in the subsection referencing geography of interest on the linked partner site to ensure that your application fits the requirements of the RFP you are applying to.</em></p><p>_______________________________________________________</p><p><a href="#_ftnref1" title="" id="_ftn1" name="_ftn1"><strong><sup>[i]</sup></strong></a> See <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/country/XO" target="_blank">World Bank – Low Income Countries</a> for definitions.</p>

Grand Challenges South Africa

Grand Challenges South Africa: Catalyzing Equitable Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use to Improve Global Health

<h2>Background</h2>
<p>Artificial Intelligence (AI) has significant potential to transform healthcare around the world. But as AI technology continues to advance, there is an urgent need to position low- and middle-income countries<a href="#_ftn1" title name="_ftnref1" id="_ftnref1"><strong><sup>[i]</sup></strong></a> (LMICs) to lead on the design and co-creation of AI-enabled technologies – thereby helping to improve the health and well-being of their women, children, and vulnerable communities. Through this call for proposal, we are emphasizing AI solutions that are locally driven and owned hence more relevant to address the needs of people they intend to serve and more likely to be accepted and used by local communities.</p>
<p>Responsible global use of AI entails a safe, equitable, transparent, reliable, and beneficial process that is adhered to with a high level of accountability. As the world rapidly moves to seize AI's opportunities, it is imperative to monitor and mitigate the safety, ethical, equity, and reliability dimensions of AI deployment. This will allow the enormous resilience, creativity, and commitment of researchers, scientists, and policymakers to capture the full capability of AI for lasting good.</p>
<p>Grand Challenges (GC) partners including GC Brazil, GC Ethiopia, GC India, GC Senegal, GC South Africa, and GC Africa (pan-African), along with the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation, the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, and the Pasteur Network, have jointly discussed the need for an equitable and responsible approach to the use of AI and specifically Large Language Models (LLMs) in LMICs. This call by the various GC partners is a follow-up to the initial call by the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation representing collaborative steps towards identifying, nurturing, and catalyzing the creativity, energy, and skills that researchers, implementers, governments, and technical partners have demonstrated in solving specific challenges in their countries and regions through LLMs. We are optimistic that this family of related AI RFPs will provide a platform for potentially transformative solutions to improve the lives and conditions for numerous vulnerable communities.</p>
<p><em>Note that this request for proposals is being launched by six Grand Challenges partners: African researchers located in Ethiopia, Senegal, and South Africa, should apply through the corresponding country specific Grand Challenges portal; African researchers located in all other African countries should apply through the Grand Challenges Africa portal; Brazilian researchers located in Brazilian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges Brazil portal; and Indian researchers located in Indian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges India portal. Eligible Pasteur Network sites located in Africa should apply through Grand Challenges Africa and Pasteur Network sites located in Brazil should apply through Grand Challenges Brazil. All other eligible Pasteur Network sites (not located in Africa or Brazil) should apply through Grand Challenges Senegal. Please consult the information provided in the subsection referencing geography of interest on the linked partner site to ensure that your application fits the requirements of the RFP you are applying to.</em></p>
<p>_______________________________________________________</p>
<p><a href="#_ftnref1" title name="_ftn1" id="_ftn1"><strong><sup>[i]</sup></strong></a> See <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/country/XO" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">World Bank – Low Income Countries</a> for definitions.</p>


<p>Artificial Intelligence (AI) has significant potential to transform healthcare around the world. But as AI technology continues to advance, there is an urgent need to position low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to lead on the design and co-creation of AI-enabled technologies – thereby helping to improve the health and well-being of their women, children, and vulnerable communities. Through this call for proposal, we are emphasizing AI solutions that are locally driven and owned hence more relevant to address the needs of people they intend to serve and more likely to be accepted and used by local communities.</p>


Grand Challenges South Africa Catalyzing Equitable Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use to Improve Global Health

<p>Appropriate antibiotic use has the power to save lives in the most vulnerable communities, and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) impacts multiple global health priority areas: HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, maternal and neonatal health, pneumonia, and enteric and diarrheal diseases. It is critical to better understand the prevalence of AMR and its impact on mortality in developing countries so that access to appropriate antibiotics is ensured while inappropriate use of antibiotics is limited. In particular, there is a need to better understand resistance in bacterial infections of newborns and young children – and to this end, understanding what is the prevalence of AMR in the community, how it impacts mortality, and how it impacts health targets. Tackling AMR will require a global, coordinated approach and the linking together of different research communities for new perspectives on the problem.</p>

<p>Note that this request for proposals is being launched on sequential dates by four Grand Challenges partnerships: African researchers located in African organizations should apply through the joint Grand Challenges Africa/Grand Challenges South Africa portal; Brazilian researchers located in Brazilian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges Brazil portal; and Indian researchers located in Indian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges India portal.</p>

<h3>What we are looking for:</h3>

<p>We seek new approaches that have the potential to transform public health action on a regional or global scale by identifying and filling gaps in knowledge on the burden of resistance to antibacterial agents – we are not seeking incremental improvements in typical disease surveillance solutions. Specifically, we seek projects that propose innovation in the following areas:</p>

<ul>
	<li><strong>Data sources</strong>: Pilot tests of new sources of data, particularly those that would bring together different research communities for new perspectives on the problem</li>
	<li><strong>Analytical methods</strong>: Pilot tests of bioinformatics approaches, including those that combine or connect existing databases in novel ways</li>
	<li><strong>Biomarkers</strong>: Pilot tests of new biomarkers or combinations of biomarkers that could lead to new understanding of the actionable implications of antimicrobial resistance surveillance data</li>
	<li><strong>Low-cost technologies and products</strong>: Exploratory work in developing new technologies and products, including 1) those that specifically target improved infection prevention and control in healthcare settings to reduce reliance on healthcare provider behavior change, and 2) technologies to remove antibiotics from effluents</li>
</ul>

<h3>We will give highest priority to those projects that:</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Pilot test approaches that could be added to existing surveillance platforms, since we are not seeking to create new surveillance platforms</li>
	<li>Incorporate multiple of the areas of innovation listed above</li>
	<li>Could contribute to a portfolio of funded projects that addresses a country’s regional diversity and the diversity of vulnerable populations</li>
	<li>Explain how proposed approaches will be tested so that they have the highest likelihood of being relevant for implementation in the country’s public health system</li>
</ul>

<h3>Examples of what we are looking for:</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Characterizes type examples of the burden of AMR (e.g., exploring the role of AMR in community or hospital sepsis-related mortality, focusing on children)</li>
	<li>Includes data sources that could indirectly reflect AMR burden (e.g., antimicrobial usage patterns or specifically how vaccination against respiratory or diarrheal diseases impacts antimicrobial use)</li>
	<li>Addresses the diversity of vulnerable populations and the different aspects of the AMR burden that might be reflected in urban versus rural settings</li>
	<li>Includes data sources ranging from the level of the individual (e.g., microbiome across body sites) to the community (e.g., public toilets and sanitation systems), while maintaining a focus on gaining new understanding of the actionable consequences of AMR gene flow.</li>
	<li>Includes data sources that could reflect AMR transmission dynamics between communities (e.g., modes of transportation) or within communities over time (e.g., seasonal-related behaviors)</li>
	<li>Provides an ecological perspective, such as a One Health perspective integrating antimicrobial use in livestock or perspectives that can integrate environmental monitoring in the community setting with medical monitoring in the hospital setting – if these perspectives are explicitly linked to human health outcomes and particularly a focus on vulnerable populations</li>
	<li>Leverages opportunities to build in new ways on existing public health interventions or environmental monitoring platforms - and to bring together different research communities</li>
	<li>Contributes to control of infections in healthcare settings: novel techniques and products to control hospital infection rates and break the chain of transmission of bacteria in clinical settings</li>
	<li>Exploratory work into developing low-cost technologies to remove antibiotics and associated chemicals from effluents</li>
</ul>

<h3>We will NOT consider funding for:</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Proposals to develop diagnostic devices and technologies or for drug discovery. Although diagnostic devices and new drugs are potentially critical to AMR solutions, these areas are not unique to AMR challenges and should therefore be advanced more comprehensively against a broader landscape of possible needs and solutions. Thus, while excluded here, they may be part of a future request for proposals.</li>
	<li>Proposals without a clear application to surveillance or facilitating the development of new evidence describing the global burden of AMR</li>
	<li>Proposals seeking to apply existing tools in ways that do not transform our understanding of the global emergence or spread of AMR</li>
	<li>Incremental improvements to conventional solutions or typical disease surveillance. We will not consider local surveillance programs or projects or small improvements in surveillance, e.g., use of mobile data collection, automation of traditional processes, or improving access to existing tools or technologies.</li>
	<li>Proposals that simply expand the availability of primary data without a clear link to informing our understanding of global AMR epidemiology</li>
	<li>Applications proposing basic research</li>
	<li>Ideas not directly relevant to low- and middle-income contexts</li>
	<li>Genomic and other laboratory-based approaches that lack a clear application to AMR surveillance or epidemiology</li>
	<li>Ideas focused on quantifying resistance in animal or livestock populations or in environmental samples without a direct linkage to how data would impact public health practice</li>
	<li>Proposals involving clinical trials in human volunteers or patients (note: use of existing datasets or other outputs from clinical trials may be considered, as long as the proposed approach is feasible within the time and financial envelopes provided).</li>
</ul>


Grand Challenges South Africa: New Approaches to Characterize the Global Burden of Antimicrobial Resistance

<p>Appropriate antibiotic use has the power to save lives in the most vulnerable communities, and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) impacts multiple global health priority areas: HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, maternal and neonatal health, pneumonia, and enteric and diarrheal diseases. It is critical to better understand the prevalence of AMR and its impact on mortality in developing countries so that access to appropriate antibiotics is ensured while inappropriate use of antibiotics is limited. In particular, there is a need to better understand resistance in bacterial infections of newborns and young children – and to this end, understanding what is the prevalence of AMR in the community, how it impacts mortality, and how it impacts health targets. Tackling AMR will require a global, coordinated approach and the linking together of different research communities for new perspectives on the problem.</p>
<p>Note that this request for proposals is being launched on sequential dates by four Grand Challenges partnerships: African researchers located in African organizations should apply through the joint Grand Challenges Africa/Grand Challenges South Africa portal; Brazilian researchers located in Brazilian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges Brazil portal; and Indian researchers located in Indian organizations should apply through the Grand Challenges India portal.</p>
<h3>What we are looking for:</h3>
<p>We seek new approaches that have the potential to transform public health action on a regional or global scale by identifying and filling gaps in knowledge on the burden of resistance to antibacterial agents – we are not seeking incremental improvements in typical disease surveillance solutions. Specifically, we seek projects that propose innovation in the following areas:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Data sources</strong>: Pilot tests of new sources of data, particularly those that would bring together different research communities for new perspectives on the problem</li>
<li><strong>Analytical methods</strong>: Pilot tests of bioinformatics approaches, including those that combine or connect existing databases in novel ways</li>
<li><strong>Biomarkers</strong>: Pilot tests of new biomarkers or combinations of biomarkers that could lead to new understanding of the actionable implications of antimicrobial resistance surveillance data</li>
<li><strong>Low-cost technologies and products</strong>: Exploratory work in developing new technologies and products, including 1) those that specifically target improved infection prevention and control in healthcare settings to reduce reliance on healthcare provider behavior change, and 2) technologies to remove antibiotics from effluents</li>
</ul>
<h3>We will give highest priority to those projects that:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Pilot test approaches that could be added to existing surveillance platforms, since we are not seeking to create new surveillance platforms</li>
<li>Incorporate multiple of the areas of innovation listed above</li>
<li>Could contribute to a portfolio of funded projects that addresses a country’s regional diversity and the diversity of vulnerable populations</li>
<li>Explain how proposed approaches will be tested so that they have the highest likelihood of being relevant for implementation in the country’s public health system</li>
</ul>
<h3>Examples of what we are looking for:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Characterizes type examples of the burden of AMR (e.g., exploring the role of AMR in community or hospital sepsis-related mortality, focusing on children)</li>
<li>Includes data sources that could indirectly reflect AMR burden (e.g., antimicrobial usage patterns or specifically how vaccination against respiratory or diarrheal diseases impacts antimicrobial use)</li>
<li>Addresses the diversity of vulnerable populations and the different aspects of the AMR burden that might be reflected in urban versus rural settings</li>
<li>Includes data sources ranging from the level of the individual (e.g., microbiome across body sites) to the community (e.g., public toilets and sanitation systems), while maintaining a focus on gaining new understanding of the actionable consequences of AMR gene flow.</li>
<li>Includes data sources that could reflect AMR transmission dynamics between communities (e.g., modes of transportation) or within communities over time (e.g., seasonal-related behaviors)</li>
<li>Provides an ecological perspective, such as a One Health perspective integrating antimicrobial use in livestock or perspectives that can integrate environmental monitoring in the community setting with medical monitoring in the hospital setting – if these perspectives are explicitly linked to human health outcomes and particularly a focus on vulnerable populations</li>
<li>Leverages opportunities to build in new ways on existing public health interventions or environmental monitoring platforms - and to bring together different research communities</li>
<li>Contributes to control of infections in healthcare settings: novel techniques and products to control hospital infection rates and break the chain of transmission of bacteria in clinical settings</li>
<li>Exploratory work into developing low-cost technologies to remove antibiotics and associated chemicals from effluents</li>
</ul>
<h3>We will NOT consider funding for:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Proposals to develop diagnostic devices and technologies or for drug discovery. Although diagnostic devices and new drugs are potentially critical to AMR solutions, these areas are not unique to AMR challenges and should therefore be advanced more comprehensively against a broader landscape of possible needs and solutions. Thus, while excluded here, they may be part of a future request for proposals.</li>
<li>Proposals without a clear application to surveillance or facilitating the development of new evidence describing the global burden of AMR</li>
<li>Proposals seeking to apply existing tools in ways that do not transform our understanding of the global emergence or spread of AMR</li>
<li>Incremental improvements to conventional solutions or typical disease surveillance. We will not consider local surveillance programs or projects or small improvements in surveillance, e.g., use of mobile data collection, automation of traditional processes, or improving access to existing tools or technologies.</li>
<li>Proposals that simply expand the availability of primary data without a clear link to informing our understanding of global AMR epidemiology</li>
<li>Applications proposing basic research</li>
<li>Ideas not directly relevant to low- and middle-income contexts</li>
<li>Genomic and other laboratory-based approaches that lack a clear application to AMR surveillance or epidemiology</li>
<li>Ideas focused on quantifying resistance in animal or livestock populations or in environmental samples without a direct linkage to how data would impact public health practice</li>
<li>Proposals involving clinical trials in human volunteers or patients (note: use of existing datasets or other outputs from clinical trials may be considered, as long as the proposed approach is feasible within the time and financial envelopes provided).</li>
</ul>


<p>We seek new approaches that have the potential to transform public health action on a regional or global scale by identifying and filling gaps in knowledge on the burden of resistance to antibacterial agents, including the linking together of different research communities for new perspectives on the problem.</p>


Grand Challenges South Africa New Approaches to Characterize the Global Burden of Antimicrobial Resistance

<p>This challenge focuses on new measurement tools and new combinations of approaches to ensure all children thrive – that they not only survive, but also have the chance to live healthy productive lives.&nbsp; The ultimate goal of this challenge is to determine what packages of interventions should be delivered to which group of individuals at what point in their life cycle to reduce the burden of fetal growth impairment and preterm birth, stunted postnatal growth, and impaired cognitive development.</p><p>This challenge joins the All Children Thriving platform, which links Grand Challenges programs targeting healthy birth, growth, and development, including the global programs <a href="http://www.grandchallenges.ca/saving-brains/" target="_blank">Saving Brains</a> and <a href="http://savinglivesatbirth.net/" target="_blank">Saving Lives at Birth</a> and a set of four new programs launched concurrently. These new programs are <a href="https://gcgh.grandchallenges.org/challenge/all-children-thriving-brazil" target="_blank">Grand Challenges Brazil: All Children Thriving</a>; <a href="http://gcgh.grandchallenges.org/challenge/all-children-thriving-0" target="_blank">Grand Challenges India: All Children Thriving</a>; Grand Challenges South Africa: All Children Thriving; and <a href="http://gcgh.grandchallenges.org/challenge/creating-and-measuring-integrated-solutions-healthy-birth-growth-and-development" target="_blank">Creating and Measuring Integrated Solutions for Healthy Birth, Growth, and Development</a> (a global program with awards to investigators in low- and middle-income countries).</p>

Challenges

Grand Challenges South Africa: Catalyzing Equitable Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use to Improve Global Health

Grand Challenges South Africa: New Approaches to Characterize the Global Burden of Antimicrobial Resistance

All Children Thriving - South Africa

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Sign up for email updates of the latest grant opportunities and awards.

View the Grand Challenges partnership network

Great ideas come from everywhere.