EU Horizon Europe Call: Strengthening Integrated Disease Surveillance and Health Systems Resilience in Sub-Saharan Africa

The EU Horizon Europe call, 'Strengthening Integrated Disease Surveillance and Health Systems Resilience in Sub-Saharan Africa', is a targeted funding opportunity under the Horizon Europe Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027). It falls under Pillar II (Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness), Cluster 1 (Health), and specifically the Destination 'Tackling diseases and reducing disease burden'. The call has an indicative budget of €20 million, with individual project grants ranging from €3 million to €5 million. The deadline for submission is September 15, 2026. The call aims to enhance the capacity of Sub-Saharan African countries to detect, prevent, and respond to infectious disease threats through the strengthening of integrated disease surveillance (IDS) systems and building resilient health systems. This includes improving laboratory networks, data sharing, workforce competencies, and community engagement. The call promotes a One Health approach, recognizing the interconnection between human, animal, and environmental health. It also emphasizes the use of digital technologies, such as electronic surveillance systems, mobile health applications, and artificial intelligence for epidemic intelligence. The call is consistent with the European Union's Global Health Strategy and the African Union's Agenda 2063, and it contributes to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being). Eligible applicants are consortia comprising legal entities from EU Member States, associated countries, and Sub-Saharan African countries. The coordinator must be from an EU Member State or associated country. The proposal must demonstrate a clear impact, sustainability, and compliance with Horizon Europe rules, including open science practices, gender equality, and ethical standards. The call provides a unique opportunity to build long-term health security in Africa through collaborative research and innovation. Geopolitically, the call addresses the urgent need to strengthen health systems in Sub-Saharan Africa, which is vulnerable to emerging infectious diseases due to factors like climate change, population growth, and limited health infrastructure. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the critical importance of robust surveillance systems and early warning mechanisms. The EU's investment aims to mitigate global health risks by enhancing local capacities, fostering regional collaboration, and supporting the Africa CDC's vision of a safer and healthier continent. The call also aligns with the EU's policy of 'Team Europe' initiatives, promoting joint action with African partners. The call is timely, as the world continues to face threats from diseases such as Ebola, Marburg virus, Rift Valley fever, and increasing antimicrobial resistance. By strengthening integrated disease surveillance, the call contributes to global health security and supports the International Health Regulations (IHR) core capacities. Immediate stakeholder priorities include building cross-border surveillance mechanisms, leveraging digital innovations for real-time data, and integrating climate-sensitive disease monitoring. This call thus represents a strategic investment for the EU and a transformative opportunity for African health systems. This call is open to a wide range of organizations, including universities, research institutes, public health agencies, NGOs, and private sector companies. The multifaceted nature of the call requires a multidisciplinary consortium covering epidemiology, diagnostics, data science, social sciences, health economics, and policy. The call expects projects to be co-designed with local health authorities and communities to ensure relevance and ownership. The duration of projects should be up to 48 months, with a focus on achieving lasting impact beyond the funding period. The call also encourages participation of early-career researchers and south-south cooperation. The evaluation criteria include excellence, impact, quality and efficiency of implementation. The proposal must include a detailed work plan, a risk mitigation strategy, and a plan for dissemination and exploitation of results. Additionally, the call requires compliance with EU 'Do No Significant Harm' principle and gender equality plan requirements. The call provides a valuable opportunity for consortia to contribute to health systems strengthening in Sub-Saharan Africa while advancing scientific knowledge and innovation. GSLI's training courses in proposal writing, financial management, and M&E can significantly enhance the quality and competitiveness of proposals.

Strategic Overview

The EU Horizon Europe call, 'Strengthening Integrated Disease Surveillance and Health Systems Resilience in Sub-Saharan Africa', is a targeted funding opportunity under the Horizon Europe Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027). It falls under Pillar II (Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness), Cluster 1 (Health), and specifically the Destination 'Tackling diseases and reducing disease burden'. The call has an indicative budget of €20 million, with individual project grants ranging from €3 million to €5 million. The deadline for submission is September 15, 2026. The call aims to enhance the capacity of Sub-Saharan African countries to detect, prevent, and respond to infectious disease threats through the strengthening of integrated disease surveillance (IDS) systems and building resilient health systems. This includes improving laboratory networks, data sharing, workforce competencies, and community engagement. The call promotes a One Health approach, recognizing the interconnection between human, animal, and environmental health. It also emphasizes the use of digital technologies, such as electronic surveillance systems, mobile health applications, and artificial intelligence for epidemic intelligence. The call is consistent with the European Union's Global Health Strategy and the African Union's Agenda 2063, and it contributes to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being). Eligible applicants are consortia comprising legal entities from EU Member States, associated countries, and Sub-Saharan African countries. The coordinator must be from an EU Member State or associated country. The proposal must demonstrate a clear impact, sustainability, and compliance with Horizon Europe rules, including open science practices, gender equality, and ethical standards. The call provides a unique opportunity to build long-term health security in Africa through collaborative research and innovation. Geopolitically, the call addresses the urgent need to strengthen health systems in Sub-Saharan Africa, which is vulnerable to emerging infectious diseases due to factors like climate change, population growth, and limited health infrastructure. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the critical importance of robust surveillance systems and early warning mechanisms. The EU's investment aims to mitigate global health risks by enhancing local capacities, fostering regional collaboration, and supporting the Africa CDC's vision of a safer and healthier continent. The call also aligns with the EU's policy of 'Team Europe' initiatives, promoting joint action with African partners. The call is timely, as the world continues to face threats from diseases such as Ebola, Marburg virus, Rift Valley fever, and increasing antimicrobial resistance. By strengthening integrated disease surveillance, the call contributes to global health security and supports the International Health Regulations (IHR) core capacities. Immediate stakeholder priorities include building cross-border surveillance mechanisms, leveraging digital innovations for real-time data, and integrating climate-sensitive disease monitoring. This call thus represents a strategic investment for the EU and a transformative opportunity for African health systems. This call is open to a wide range of organizations, including universities, research institutes, public health agencies, NGOs, and private sector companies. The multifaceted nature of the call requires a multidisciplinary consortium covering epidemiology, diagnostics, data science, social sciences, health economics, and policy. The call expects projects to be co-designed with local health authorities and communities to ensure relevance and ownership. The duration of projects should be up to 48 months, with a focus on achieving lasting impact beyond the funding period. The call also encourages participation of early-career researchers and south-south cooperation. The evaluation criteria include excellence, impact, quality and efficiency of implementation. The proposal must include a detailed work plan, a risk mitigation strategy, and a plan for dissemination and exploitation of results. Additionally, the call requires compliance with EU 'Do No Significant Harm' principle and gender equality plan requirements. The call provides a valuable opportunity for consortia to contribute to health systems strengthening in Sub-Saharan Africa while advancing scientific knowledge and innovation. GSLI's training courses in proposal writing, financial management, and M&E can significantly enhance the quality and competitiveness of proposals.

Who is it For?

This call is designed for consortia comprising research and academic institutions, public health agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), international organizations, and private sector entities from EU Member States and Sub-Saharan African countries. Eligible lead applicants must be legal entities established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe associated country. Co-applicants must include at least one entity from Sub-Saharan Africa. Consortia should include a balanced mix of partners with complementary expertise in epidemiology, laboratory diagnostics, health informatics, community health, health economics, and policy analysis. Specifically, partners should demonstrate experience in integrated disease surveillance systems (IDSR), One Health platforms, digital health technologies (e.g., mobile health, electronic medical records, geographic information systems), and health systems strengthening. NGOs with grassroots reach and capacity for community engagement are highly encouraged. Additionally, private sector entities such as diagnostic companies, technology providers, and pharmaceutical firms can contribute expertise in supply chain management, diagnostic innovation, and data analytics. The call promotes interdisciplinarity and cross-sectoral collaboration, requiring involvement of social scientists, economists, and communication experts to address behavioral and governance aspects. South-South cooperation among African partners is also valued. The target beneficiaries are Ministries of Health, National Public Health Institutes, and local health authorities in Sub-Saharan Africa, which must be actively involved in project co-design and implementation. The call expects strong ownership by African partners and alignment with national disease surveillance priorities.

Priorities

The donor's global priorities focus on enhancing health security and pandemic preparedness in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Under the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan 2021-2024 (and ongoing), the key investment KPIs include: (i) improvement in early detection of disease outbreaks (reduce time from onset to detection by at least 30%); (ii) increase in data sharing and interoperability (number of data systems integrated across sectors); (iii) number of health workforce trained in integrated surveillance; (iv) expansion of laboratory networks for pathogen genomics and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) monitoring; (v) adoption of One Health approaches linking human, animal, and environmental health; (vi) strengthened cross-border surveillance mechanisms in at least 3 regional economic communities (e.g., ECOWAS, EAC, SADC); (vii) evidence of policy uptake in at least 2 national health strategies; and (viii) gender equity in surveillance leadership and community participation. The call emphasizes digitalization, including use of artificial intelligence for predictive modeling, real-time dashboards, and mobile reporting systems. Climate-health linkages are also a priority, with focus on climate-sensitive infectious diseases (e.g., malaria, dengue, Rift Valley fever). The European Commission prioritizes projects that demonstrate scalability, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability beyond the funding period. Additionally, alignment with the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) and the WHO's Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) framework is expected. Projects should also contribute to the African Union's Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) strategies, including the Partnerships for African Vaccine Manufacturing (PAVM) and the New Public Health Order.

Eligibility

Eligibility criteria are strictly defined. The consortium must include at least one legal entity from an EU Member State or Horizon Europe associated country as the coordinator, and at least one independent legal entity from a Sub-Saharan African country. All partners must be eligible under Horizon Europe rules: they must be established in a country with a formal agreement with the European Commission. Non-EU entities from Sub-Saharan Africa are eligible if they are listed as eligible countries in the Horizon Europe work programme. Third countries not automatically eligible may participate if the consortium demonstrates their essential contribution. The call requires a minimum of three partners from three different countries (at least one EU or associated country and one Sub-Saharan African country). Financial audits: all partners must have the capacity to manage EU funds, with annual accounts audited for the past two years. The EU funding rate is up to 100% of total eligible costs for non-profit entities and up to 70% for for-profit entities. Budget planning must follow Horizon Europe cost categories: personnel, equipment, subcontracting, travel, and indirect costs (flat rate 25% of direct costs). The total project duration should not exceed 48 months. Proposals must be submitted via the Funding & Tenders Portal by September 15, 2026. The proposal must be written in English and include a detailed work plan, Gantt chart, risk register, and data management plan. Compliance with the EU's 'Do No Significant Harm' principle (DNSH) and gender equality plan requirements is mandatory. Additionally, projects must adhere to ethical standards, including data protection (GDPR), informed consent, and ethics for research involving human subjects. The call prohibits double-funding, and all consortium members must confirm no overlapping funding from other EU sources for the same activities.

Path to Success

To secure funding under this call, a strategic roadmap integrating GSLI training courses is essential. Step 1: Consortium Building and Capacity Assessment (Months 1-3) – Identify key partners from EU and Sub-Saharan Africa with complementary expertise in surveillance, diagnostics, digital health, and policy. Conduct a gap analysis to determine capacity needs in areas such as proposal writing, financial management, and M&E. GSLI recommends its courses 'Writing Winning Proposals' and 'Financial Management for NGOs' to strengthen partners' ability to articulate a coherent and compliant proposal. Step 2: Needs Assessment and Co-Design (Months 4-6) – Engage local health authorities and communities to define surveillance priorities. Use participatory methods to design interventions that are contextually relevant. GSLI's 'Monitoring & Evaluation for Development' course equips teams to define baseline indicators, outcome measurement frameworks, and data collection plans aligned with donor KPIs. Step 3: Proposal Development and Submission (Months 7-12) – Draft the proposal with clear objectives, methodology, work packages, budget, and risk management. Ensure alignment with Horizon Europe rules and integrate cross-cutting themes like gender equality and climate resilience. GSLI's 'Public Health & Epidemiology' and 'WASH' courses provide technical depth for crafting robust epidemiological and environmental health components. Step 4: Pre-award Preparation and Capacity Strengthening (Months 13-15) – Once shortlisted, consortium should prepare for the evaluation phase by refining the proposal and addressing any clarifications. GSLI's 'Grants Management' course helps partners understand EU grant management, reporting requirements, and audit readiness. Ongoing training in 'Project Management for Development' ensures effective coordination and deliverables management. By leveraging GSLI's training, consortia enhance their credibility, technical expertise, and compliance capacity, significantly increasing the likelihood of a successful bid and impactful implementation.

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Deadline: 2026-09-15

Persona: General

Urgency: Normal