Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Launch New Call for Family Planning
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) has announced the Family Planning (FP) Strategy – Re-Examining Traditional Method Use initiative, which seeks to fund mixed-method research that will produce new data and analysis on the motivations and reasons for traditional contraceptive methods used by women in specific developing countries.
Through this investment, BMGF seeks to fund research that better informs the FP community about traditional method use specifically, and other ‘non-modern’ methods of pregnancy avoidance more broadly, in order to better inform FP programming and research.
Findings will be key in helping to determine:
If traditional method users are accurately captured in current survey approaches.
Whether traditional method use represents a personal preference or part of the pathway to modern method use.
How the FP field should account for traditional method users in FP goals and programme strategies.
This investment does not seek to promote or demote traditional methods of contraception but instead aims to better understand the generally neglected preferences and motivations of women who use traditional contraceptive methods to avoid pregnancy.
The ideal proposal will put forth a consortium of partnerships between multiple skilled organisations, with locally based research partners who are co-investigators.
Application is open to any organisation, non-profit entity, charity or for-profit entity, including academic and research organisations, NGOs with strong research departments and government bodies. Applicants can be based in any country. Applicants can seek partnership with other organisations or individuals to complete the work. In the case of a multi-partner approach or consortium, the proposed project must have an organising/coordination lead to manage the consortium.
Studies should take place in three specific countries. Countries should include one South Asian country (India or Pakistan), one Central African country (with strong preference for Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which has very high traditional method use) and one other country with a different traditional method use profile priority for countries that are in sub-Saharan Africa and/or is a BMGF FP priority country.
The total estimated budget for the programme is $1.5 million to $2 million for up to two years for primary data collection in three countries. This total budget will be awarded to a single project. The anticipated start date for funded projects is February 2020.
Proposals will be selected for funding in a two-phase process: short concept memos followed by invited full proposals.
The following key dates apply to this scheme:
Q&A period for clarifying questions: 20 August to 12 September 2019
Deadline for submitting concept memos: 4 October 2019
Successful applicants notified to submit a full proposal: 22 October 2019
Deadline for submitting invited full proposals: 15 November 2019
Applicants must register with BMGF via the Request for Concepts website and submit their concept memo by email.
More information about this research funding opportunity and the application process is available on the RESEARCHconnect funding information platform. RESEARCHconnect provides up-to-the minute content, insight and analysis on research funding news and policy. To find out more about how RESEARCHconnect can keep you in the know, and subscription fees, contact us today.