Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Discovery Research - Research Support Hub

The Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Programme has developed a successful training programme focusing on undergraduate to early postdoctoral career stages, producing an internationally competitive pipeline of candidates winning fellowships, scholarships and studentships. However, there is a sharp drop in successfully funded fellowship and grant applications from the PhD level to early career researchers (ECRs) and mid-career researchers (MCRs) levels, primarily due to limited investment in targeted programmes to support the transition to research independence. As such, we have co-developed a solution with ECRs and MCRs that addresses the gaps and barriers that hinder their career growth and ability to attract competitive funding in the current environment. Our aim is to establish a regional Hub to support ECRs and MCRs in Malawi and the wider SADC region (initially focusing on Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Mozambique) in developing competitive grant applications for Wellcome’s Discovery Research schemes and other fellowship schemes applicable to LMIC applicants. We will use a modular approach of two parallel work packages, one focusing on general fellowship preparedness and another on targeted application support. A third work package focussing on learning and improving will ensure continued adaptation of the initiative to meet the current needs and inform future initiatives.