This group of more than 30 non-profit organizations, works to increase awareness of the urgent need for technologies which can save lives in low- and middle-income countries.

By convening and coordinating the activities of the global health community, GHTC informs decision-makers in the United States about the need for policies and resources to rapidly advance global health technologies.

Charles Gardner, senior innovation specialist at the Global Forum for Health Research, said: “The Global Forum believes that all countries, rich and poor, need to increase their investments in research to improve health and health equity.

“However, we recognize that the United States is the largest single national investor in research to address the health needs of developing countries. “

By joining the GHTC, the Global Forum will contribute to policy debates in the US Federal Government. The Obama Administration recently created a Global Health Initiative, based in the US Agency for International Development (USAID), to coordinate efforts across all federal agencies.

Francis Collins, Director of the US National Institutes of Health, announced last year that global health research is one of the five top priorities for his $30+ billion dollar a year research agency.

About the Global Health Technologies Coalition

The Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC) seeks to engage and inform US decision-makers about policies to accelerate the creation of new tools to address longstanding global health problems in low-resource settings.

These tools include new vaccines, drugs, microbicides, diagnostic tests and other devices.

The coalition advocates for increased and effective use of public resources, incentives to encourage private investment, and improved regulatory systems. The GHTC is housed at PATH and funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.