Press Maria da Graça Carvalho nominated EPP rapporteur for the Second European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership programme

In her capacity of member of the Committee of Industry, Research and Energy of the European Parliament and rapporteur for the specific programme implementing Horizon 2020, Maria da Graça Carvalho was appointed EPP rapporteur for the Second European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership. Ms. Carvalho is also president of the Committee on Economic Development, Finance and Trade of the Delegation to the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.  

The European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership programme EDCTP was established in 2003 in response to the global health crisis caused by the three main poverty-related diseases - HIV-AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis and to the EU´s commitment to achieving the United Nation´s Millenium Development Goals by 2015. 

The EDCTP2, from 2014-2024, will improve EU´s capacity to invest more efficiently in the research and development of new or improved medical interventions against poverty-related diseases for the benefit of and in partnership with developing countries, in particular with sub-Saharan African countries.   

Maria da Graça Carvalho believes that the EDCTP plays an exemplary role in European Union's international cooperation. The EDCTP has proven itself to be remarkably effective in improving medical intervention and the quality of the research designed to combat poverty-related diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. 

In the process, the African partners have retained a high degree of ownership and leadership: African experts coordinate more than half of the 57 clinical trials carried out and have been awarded three quarters of EDCTP funding.  Similarly, the initiative has helped train hundreds of African researchers and medical doctors through its fellowship programme and other training schemes. At the same time, EDCTP funding aims to foster clinical research in Africa in a sound ethical and regulatory environment. 

Horizon 2020 provides for the renewal of the EU's financial commitment to EDCTP. To this end, the European EDCTP partner countries and the European Commission plan to invest at least EUR 0.5 billion each, while seeking additional pledges of a similar magnitude from foundations, charities, companies, NGOs and other countries. The aim is that the EDCTP2 programme raises an overall budget of around EUR 1.5 billion to fight poverty related and neglected infectious diseases in the years to come. 

Concerning the impact of H2020 on the EDCTP2, Maria da Graça Carvalho underlines that "there was a substantial increase in the budget for research and innovation. The fact that health concerns have been granted the largest share of the budget devoted to societal challenges - and that poverty related diseases are a clearly recognised priority - will translate into continued, sustainable funding for EDCTP2". 

Ms. Carvalho also said that the new characteristics of H2020 - the fact that the programme covers the whole cycle of innovation, that a real effort has been made to simplify access to funding and that a central place has been given to scientific lead approaches - will mean that the work of EDCTP2 will be significantly facilitated.  Simplification is particularly pertinent in a context in which it is necessary to bring together funding from a number of different budgets to deal with challenges that are often costly.  

Maria da Graça Carvalho believes "that the work carried out by the EDCTP - is crucial and has real and tangible benefits for humanity as a whole." 

Last November, Maria da Graça Carvalho participated in the high-level conference preparing the second European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership programme (EDCTP2), which took place in Cape Town. The event was opened by HE Naledi Pandor and European Commissioner for Research Maire Geoghegan-Quinn. 

As Minister of Science, Innovation and Higher Education in Portugal, Maria da Graça Carvalho was directly involved in 2003 in the negotiations and in the approval in the Competitiveness Council of the EDCTP1.