Global Challenges Research Fund

The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) is a £1.5 billion fund announced by the UK government in late 2015 to support cutting-edge research that addresses the challenges faced by developing countries. Alongside the other GCRF delivery partners, we are creating complementary programmes that:

• promote challenge-led disciplinary and interdisciplinary research, including the participation of researchers who may not previously have considered the applicability of their work to development issues
• strengthen capacity for research, innovation and knowledge exchange in the UK and developing countries through partnership working
• provide an agile response to emergencies where there is an urgent research need.

GCRF forms part of the UK’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) commitment, which is monitored by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The MRC and GCRF

The launch of GCRF has created new opportunities to build on the MRC’s strong commitment to global health research. GCRF funding is currently accessible through three routes:

• MRC strategic calls: ad hoc calls for research with the potential to have substantial impact on specific areas of global health. These funding activities are often run in collaboration with other funding agencies including fellow GCRF delivery partners. Read examples of previous strategic calls.
• MRC boards and panels: The four MRC boards (Population and Systems Medicine, Infections and Immunity, Neurosciences and Mental Health, Molecular and Cellular Medicine), as well as the Translational Research and Skills and Careers panels all support research that is relevant to global health and have GCRF allocations to award via standard researcher-led routes. Applicants do not need to mark their submission as seeking GCRF funding. Read examples of previous GCRF researcher-led awards.
• UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Collective Fund: as part of UKRI, MRC participates in UKRI-wide funding initiatives. Read examples of UKRI Collective Fund calls.

Current GCRF funding opportunities

Visit our application deadlines page to find out about the latest MRC strategic and boards/panels opportunities.

For all UKRI Collective Fund calls and recent announcements refer to UKRI's GCRF page.