22 May 2022 – The research proposal guidelines have been developed to support health research initiatives in countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region, with a focus on promoting health research as a tool for national development programming and increasing the use of evidence-based action and health planning for provision of equitable health care. The guidelines were first drafted in 2001 to support the WHO Regional Office's initiative for Research in Priority Areas of Public Health. Based on extensive feedback from researchers, policy-makers and experts in regional health research, the new guidelines and application form are meant to be more user-friendly to encourage as many researchers from different countries to apply for the grant as possible. 

Since the adoption of the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda, a growing emphasis on ‘leave no one behind’ requires that action be taken in the field of reducing inequities and protecting and promoting human rights and gender equality. Thus, when preparing your research proposals as per the priorities outlined under Section 5, please consider marginalized and underserved populations’ health needs and risks and disaggregation of collected data by sex, age and socioeconomic quintiles in your analysis plan. 

Special Grant for Research in Priority Areas of Public Health 

In 2002, the WHO Regional Office Special Grant for Research in Priority Areas of Public Health (EMRPPH) was established. Through a competitive process of selection, funds are provided to successful research proposals. The focus for this round is the strategic directions identified by the WHO Regional Director in the regional Vision 2023, including expanding universal health coverage, addressing health emergencies, and promoting healthier populations. Relevant technical programmes in the Regional Office were consulted in the preparation of this call for proposals. The award amount will range from US$ 8000 to US$ 10 000 for each proposal, and the proposed duration for which support is requested must not exceed 10 months. 

Priority areas

Objectives

The general objective is to promote regional-based research in the strategic areas of the work of the WHO Regional Office.

The specific objectives of this call for proposals are to:

generate local knowledge relevant to the strategic areas; 

assist capacity-building for research through learning by doing and hands-on training; 

strengthen the link between evidence generation and health policy-making; and

enhance experience exchange between Member States of the Region.

Only health-related research proposals meeting the following criteria are eligible for support:

The research proposal must be related to the priority areas specified by this call for proposals; and

The research proposal must not duplicate a proposal to another national or international agency for simultaneous consideration

Grant application

The completed proposal with its annexes should be submitted through email ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) including the following:

• Completed proposal form

• Data collection form(s)

• Completed ethics review checklist

• Informed consent forms (in English and local language)

• Support documents (provisional national/institutional ethical approval; short CVs of investigators) 

The responsibility for proper citation rests with the authors of the proposal (team of investigators) and their respective institutions; all parts of the proposal should be prepared with equal care to address this concern. 

Eligibility of applicants

Health-related scientists, researchers and scholars based in countries of the Region are encouraged to submit proposals. While postgraduate students are not encouraged to submit research proposals on their own, they could support teams of investigators, accordingly. The Principal Investigator (PI) must be a national of a Member State of the Region and the research site should be in one of its Member States. 

Individuals and institutions

Individuals and institutions engaged in regional health research are considered eligible for submitting proposals which include: 

ministries, academic institutions, and research institutes in countries of the Region. 

nongovernmental organizations: professional societies and civil service organizations involved in regional health research activities. 

Submission of proposals 

All proposals should be submitted in English only, along with the ‘Research ethics checklist’ – Annex II via email at ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ). The applications must be signed by the PI and head of the concerned institution. Unsigned copies will be considered incomplete and will not be processed. 

Guidelines and application form