ABOUT RESEARCH FOR HEALTH IN LOW INCOME COUNTRIES 

• National research capacity. 
• Institutional research capacity.
• Research capacity funding.

ESSENCE focuses on the following:

• Funders of research for health, who recognize the need to work together in addressing the research capacity needs as expressed by partner countries.
• Research (and innovation) capacity strengthening for health.
• Low income countries in Africa

GOALS

• The overall goal of ESSENCE is to increase and improve the impact of investments into structures and institutions in low income African countries to ensure that conditions for research and utilisation of knowledge are built on a sustained basis. The initiative will foster the analytical capacity and scientific knowledge in low income African countries through sustainable national research systems in the pursuit of national development. 
• Increased coordination, harmonisation and aligned funding with African countries’ agendas for developing human, institutional, environmental resources and conditions for advancing scientific activities to find and apply solutions to public health problems.
• To develop a global collaboration dialogue between funders themselves, as well as, between funders and recipient countries, for learning from each other, with respect to strategies, methodologies and on research needs associated with diseases of poverty with the aim of coordinating, harmonizing and aligning activities with countries agendas.
• Advocate for better links between research and development projects, initiatives and ministries.
• Develop country-based pilot models of collaboration between programmes to harmonize practices and optimize resources
• Document successes and failures in strategies, approaches and support focused for capacity development.
• Develop methodologies including monitoring and evaluation indicators to track the input, process and impact of investment in capacity development at individual, institution, systems, research environment and political levels.
• To create and maintain an electronic platform to consolidate information on support modalities, opportunities for application, ongoing projects, etc.