EGHRIN summary of the event Equal Voices: Addressing Inequities in Global Health Research Participation

EGHRIN, the European Global Health Research Institutes Network, hosted a satellite symposium at the 10th EDCTP Forum on “Equal Voices: Addressing Inequities in Global Health Research Participation,” attended by over 80 international participants.

The session was chaired by Dr Leonardo Simao, the EDCTP High Representative for Africa and included keynote presentations by Dr Barbara Kerstiëns (European Commission, Head of the Unit RTD D1 – Combating Diseases), Prof Jolene Skordis (UCL Institute for Global Health, London) and Prof Catherine Kyotubungi (African Population and Health Research Center, Kenya), followed by a panel discussion and contributions from the participating audience.

The speakers highlighted the fundamental inequities currently structuring Global Health, from ways in which the global North dominates research and teaching agendas, to the gender imbalance in research leadership.  All participants then reflected on the actions needed to effect change including European Commission initiatives to support female researchers, decolonising Global Health curricula and a new metric to measure equity in research funding and promote sustained capacity strengthening.  There was a wider call also to move beyond rhetoric to affect real change with the support not only of the global health community, but of all communities in the globe.

Working Group “EDCTP Satellite: Press Release and Recommendations”: Jolene Skordis, Alberto Rocamora, Guenter Froeschl; 13 December 2021