Deadline: Friday 16 December 2022

Fund

Family planning is one of the most cost-effective ways of reducing maternal and infant mortality and contributes to the empowerment of women and families, as well as expanding opportunities for economic development. In recent decades, there have been huge improvements in women's reproductive health in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and dramatic increases in the use of modern contraceptive methods. As of 2019, more than half of the 1.6 billion women of reproductive age (15 to 49) living in low- and middle-income countries want to avoid pregnancy, so the need for contraception is great. Globally, approximately 257 million women had an unmet need for modern contraception - in other words, they wanted to avoid pregnancy but were not using a modern method. Almost half of pregnancies in low- and middle-income countries - 111 million a year - are unintended,

Although current contraceptives include exceptionally safe and effective options, not all methods are suitable or acceptable for all women at all stages of their reproductive lives, and concerns about undesirable side effects remain a significant barrier to greater acceptance and continued use of existing methods. As a result, women who wish to avoid pregnancy often find themselves without viable options that meet their needs. Overall, among women with unmet needs, 26% cite side effects/health risks as the main reason for non-use, with 24% reporting infrequent or no sexual activity. Among the unwanted side effects, women report that changes in bleeding (longer/more intense periods, spotting between periods, and amenorrhoea) are less likely to be tolerated on a contraceptive and are one of the main concerns raised by women who discontinue and/or avoid using hormonal contraceptives. Fear of hormone use and its impact on health and fertility results in some women not using modern methods.

Despite this, innovation leading to new contraceptive products suitable for use in low- and middle-income countries has been limited. Much of the product development that has taken place has been innovation in the delivery of the same classes of hormones, which cause similar side effects and do not fully address women's underlying problems and concerns. In addition, although the proportion of women with unmet need for modern contraception is higher in sub-Saharan Africa, contraceptive R&D is very limited in Africa.

The challenge

This RFP seeks innovations that contribute to the development of safe and effective non-hormonal contraceptives that meet the needs and interests of women and address the main barriers to access and use of currently available methods. We are looking for non-hormonal contraceptives that are easy to access, discreet, convenient and non-invasive. In addition, it is important that these methods have tolerable side effects and do not affect the menstrual cycle. This work will be led by Grand Challenges Africa, a programme of the Science for Africa Foundation with financial support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The ultimate goal is the development of new non-hormonal female contraceptives that 1) provide safe and effective contraception, 2) do not contain sex steroid hormones or depend on hormonal mechanisms of action (for example, do not affect the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis), 3) they do not interrupt endogenous menstrual bleeding patterns and 4) they are suitable and appropriate for use in low- and middle-income countries. The overall goal is to reduce the unmet need for contraception by increasing contraceptive acceptance, continuation and satisfaction among adolescent girls of reproductive age and women who wish to avoid pregnancy. Innovation in contraceptive products is necessary to achieve this goal.

Equally important is the goal of investing in local scientific capacity in low- and middle-income countries, in particular to build and strengthen the capacity of African scientists and institutions to conduct R&D around the development of new contraceptive products. This Grand Challenges Africa opportunity aims to expand locally-led, gender-equitable R&D capacity in Africa and begin to foster a thriving contraceptive R&D ecosystem on the African continent with a collaborative network of scientists working together to innovate in contraceptive R&D.

This Grand Challenges call for proposals aims to fund awards of up to US$ 350,000 and for up to 2 years, based on the scope of the proposed project. Specifically, the objectives of the challenge are: We are looking for proposals that: We will not consider funding proposals focussed on: Award Application steps: Application timeline Partner information

How to apply

Applications must be submitted via the SFA Foundation's Grants Management System - Agaseke, accessed here: https://agaseke.scienceforafrica.foundation/Login.aspx  

Registration deadline

Applications until 16 December 2022, 5pm East African time