African countries often host clinical trials that are led by researchers from other continents. But in the last decade, researchers in Africa are increasingly playing a leading role in clinical research, thanks in part to the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), an alliance between 16 European countries that launched in 2003 to collaborate with sub-Saharan African nations in the development of treatments for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Since its establishment, EDCTP has provided €212 million ($287 million) to help fund 100 clinical trials in 30 African countries and to develop the infrastructure and expertise needed to conduct those studies in line with international scientific and ethical standards. Researchers employed by African institutions have led more than 70% of EDCTP-funded projects.
The current EDCTP program is drawing to a close, but the Netherlands-based organization is gearing up for a second phase of the initiative, known as EDCTP2. So far, 14 European countries have signed up as members of EDCTP2 and have pledged a combined total of €683 million to the partnership, which is hoped to launch by the end of this year and last until 2023. Of the 16 countries that participated in EDCTP1, Belgium, Greece and Switzerland have not yet joined; Finland was not a member of the program's first phase but has signed up for EDCTP2. On 6 May, the European Union agreed to match the European states' financial contribution, bringing the grand total to more than €1.3 billion.
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