Evaluation of the Product Development Partnerships (PDP) funding activities
Abstract
Product Development Partnerships (PDPs) have played an important role in improving the funding and accelerating development of novel and much needed interventions to address issues of global health, especially for poor and disadvantaged populations. Through their ability to bring together partners from academia, industry, the public sector and multilateral agencies to develop effective, affordable, appropriate and accessible products, PDPs have also stimulated increased collaboration of the pharmaceutical industry to work on the diseases of poverty (DoP).
The aim of this report is to provide information to The UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) about the value of their current investments and help making informed decisions on future PDP investments through an evaluation of the operations and performance of Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) and Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) over the period 2009-2013. In addition, the performance and operation of the European Vaccine Initiative (EVI) over the period 2009-13 was assessed building on the results of an existing external review of EVI which was carried out in 2012-2013.
This evaluation included a thorough review and analysis of relevant documentation and interviews with stakeholders of DNDi and FIND, members of the PDPs’ boards, steering committees, and advisory boards, the PDP Funders Group, key informants at WHO, Global Health Partnerships, EDCTP, and other multilaterals, private sector partners of the PDPs and country–level stakeholders.
The overall recommendations are:
- Public funders should continue to support PDPs with long-term financing in order to ensure there is a steady stream of needed interventions for neglected infectious diseases. This funding should be mostly unrestricted or semi-restricted.
- All PDPs should seek to diversify their funding base (as DNDi is doing) in order to ensure that they have the flexibility to set and follow their own strategy and not be driven by the requirements of one dominant funder.
- Funders should agree amongst themselves on the measures of impact and value for money, and to give clear guidance to PDPs (amongst others) to ensure comparisons can be made in a consistent manner.
Citation
Boulton, I.; Meredith, S.; Mertenskoetter, T.; Glaue, F. Evaluation of the Product Development Partnerships (PDP) funding activities. (2015) 71 pp.
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