2026 NHMRC GACD: Multisectoral Approaches Funding Call

2026 NHMRC GACD: Multisectoral Approaches Funding Call is sponsored by National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) / Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases (GACD). This opportunity supports mission-aligned projects and measurable outcomes.

Eleventh GACD Funding Call: Multisectoral Approaches | GACD Eleventh GACD Funding Call:... Eleventh GACD Funding Call: Multisectoral Approaches Implementation research, maximising collaboration and coordination with sectors and in settings beyond the healthcare system to tackle chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in underserved populations.

The eleventh call for applications under the GACD banner focuses on implementation research proposals, maximising collaboration and coordination with sectors and in settings beyond the healthcare system to tackle chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in underserved populations.

We support research in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC: as defined by the world bank ) and in populations (such as Indigenous Populations) experiencing inequity in high-income countries (HIC). Global recognition of the social and structural determinants of NCDs points to additional approaches to prevent and manage NCDs, by leveraging opportunities provided by settings and sectors beyond the formal healthcare system.

There is a requirement for a comprehensive approach, across the whole of government, involving sectors (i.e. ministries and departments) outside of health and medical care, to meet the global targets that governments have agreed upon to protect people from NCDs.

Implementing innovative measures to tackle NCDs will also require partnerships with communities and non-government sectors (including NGOs, civil society, foundations, community enterprises, and faith-based organisations) to offer flexible and supportive environments and delivery of resources.

These partnerships and efforts may help foster stronger engagement of individuals, communities and populations alienated from mainstream care due to inequities/differences in access, education, health beliefs, attitudes, geography, language or other factors.

Preparing an application for the joint funding call’s joint process This eleventh GACD joint funding call offers two routes to submission and review depending on the funding agencies involved. The joint submission and review process will follow a two-stage application and review process. Applicants will first submit provisional Stage 1 proposals, and the eligible applications will undergo peer review.

The applicants will receive feedback from this initial review. Successful applicants will then be invited to submit full Stage 2 proposals, which will be assessed by the GACD Joint Peer Review Panel. Those funding agencies running parallel calls under the GACD umbrella have their own submission and review processes.

These will differ from, and run separately to, the GACD joint peer review process. The European Commission for example is running a single stage funding call as a parallel process.

Key documents and resources Specific considerations for GACD applications GACD joint process, Stage 1, application guidance Project participants table Application form template NHMRC Indigenous Research Excellence Criteria (IREC) mERA checklist for mHealth projects Applicants briefing webinar – 24 March 2026. Please see: GACD Joint Process Application Portal will open on 21 September 2026 for applications invited to Stage 2.

Funding agencies taking part in the Joint call Australia – National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) : NHMRC will offer 5M AUD (~3. 2M USD) to fund 4-5 projects under this call. Please see NHMRC Agency-specific information Please also consult the NHMRC website for further information.

Current Grant Opportunity View – GO8266: GrantConnect , and NHMRC’s Find Funding webpage. Budget form for the Stage 2 applications. Canada – Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) : Please see CIHR Agency-specific information the CIHR Funding Opportunity Details ; Glossary of Funding-Related Terms - CIHR Budget form for the Stage 2 applications.

India – Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) : Applications for ICMR funding must request joint funding with one of the other agencies participating in the call. ICMR will fund projects that take place in India and all research activities to be undertaken in India are required to seek funding support exclusively through ICMR.

ICMR has a total budget of ~220,000 USD per project and expects to jointly fund up to 3 projects under this call. Please see ICMR Agency-specific information South Africa – South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC): Applications for SAMRC funding must request joint funding with NHMRC and/or CIHR. SAMRC have a total budget of ~40,000 USD per year and expects to jointly fund up to 2 projects under this call.

Please see the SAMRC Agency-specific information for more details. 11th GACD Multisectoral Approaches Call – SAMRC. Thailand – Health Systems Research Institute (HSRI): Applications for HSRI funding must request joint funding with another agency taking part in the call.

HSRI have a total budget of 10,200,000 THB (~300,000 USD). HSRI expects to jointly fund up to 2 projects under this call. Please see the HSRI Agency-specific information for more details.

European Commission opened a single-stage lump-sum funding call ( HORIZON-HLTH-2026-01-DISEASE-09 ) on 10 February. The deadline for applications to this call was 16 April 2026 . The Horizon Europe Info Day for Cluster 1: Health was held on Tuesday 10 Feb 2026, you can now watch recordings from the day.

An online brokerage event for consortium building was also held 26-30 January 2026. If you have questions regarding EC/HE eligibility and other requirements you may wish to contact your country’s National Contact Point and check Horizon Europe – Work programme 2026-2027 – General Annexes. The US National Institutes of Health : We expect the NIH GACD Health Systems & Multisectoral Approaches call to be announced in 2026.

Joint process opened – 2 March 2026. Applicants briefing webinar – 24 March 2026. *Submission of Stage 1 applications has finished.

*Notice of shortlisting decision – September 2026. *Stage 2 (by invitation only) Deadline for Joint process’ applications – 20 October 2026. *Notice of decision – March-April 2027.

*European Commission / Horizon Europe The deadline for applications to this call was 16 April 2026 (17:00 Brussels time). HORIZON-HLTH-2026-01-DISEASE-09 Co-funding considerations The agencies joining the call have their specific co-funding requirements. Thailand – Health Systems Research Institute (HSRI): Applications for HSRI funding must request joint funding with another agency taking part in the call.

The majority of funds contributed by HSRI will be for the exclusive purpose of funding research in Thailand or international collaborative research where one of the Principal Investigators is a Thai researcher. South Africa – South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC): SAMRC requires joint funding with NHMRC and/or CIHR. Part of the project must take place in South Africa or the African Continent.

India – Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) : Applications for ICMR funding must request joint funding with another agency taking part in the call. ICMR will fund projects that take place in India and all research activities to be undertaken in India are required to seek funding support exclusively through ICMR.

This also means that the project team must include Indian investigators who meet ICMR eligibility requirements, as well as co-Principal Investigator(s) who meet the requirements of at least one other GACD funding agency. The budget for work conducted outside of India must fall under the eligible costs of the co-funding agency.

Please note specific application requirements for projects involving Indigenous Peoples in Canada or other countries in collaboration with Canada and Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Applicants must apply to the specific GACD funding agency/ies participating into this call according to their conditions. The funding agency members of the GACD do not pool their funds together.

Applicants must therefore ensure that they are eligible to receive funds and that their proposed projects meet all requirements of at least one of the funders participating in this call. Teams should be diverse and multidisciplinary. Teams are encouraged to ensure gender and geographical balance in leadership.

The GACD expects that project teams will exhibit fair and equitable collaboration, especially between HIC – LMIC and non-Indigenous – Indigenous partners.

A match-making tool has been created for applicants, to facilitate collaboration and team building: The tool can be used for both: Partners looking for projects: As individual researcher, policymaker, community representative or other relevant stakeholder, searching for a project to join.

Projects looking for partners: If you want to build a consortium around an existing project and want to find partners for your project or require specific expertise on the team. The find a collaborator tool is available here. Language translation guidance All application materials must be submitted in English unless otherwise noted.

However, we anticipate that project teams may include non-English speakers that play a critical role in planning the research project. There are links to external websites in English throughout this webpage. You may need to view this webpage in its original English to access these links.

To translate the material presented on linked websites, please open them in Google Chrome. If you are in a non-English speaking country, you should automatically be given the option to convert the text into your local language. To translate materials in documents linked to this webpage: Go to https://translate.

google. com/ Click ‘Documents’ in the upper left hand corner Select your preferred language Please note that materials translated by Google typically have errors. E-mail addresses in particular may be corrupted if translated; please always use the e-mail address provided in the original document or webpage.

We highly recommend that you work with a fluent English speaker when preparing your GACD application materials to ensure that you comply with all GACD eligibility requirements and that the peer reviewers can easily understand and evaluate your application. Frequently asked questions You can contact funding@gacd. org with any questions about this funding call.

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Non-communicable diseases Become an Associate Member Management of Multiple Long-Term Conditions Eleventh GACD Funding Call: Multisectoral Approaches General application guidance Specific considerations for GACD applications Future GACD funding call topic: 2027 Past calls for applications Scale up - hypertension & diabetes Strengthening Health Systems Implementation science training Faculty and other contributors Annual Scientific Meetings Annual Scientific Meeting 2026 Annual Scientific Meeting 2025 Annual Scientific Meeting 2024 Annual Scientific Meeting 2023 Top tips for engaging with policymakers Annual reports and achievement reports Engaging with policymakers Engaging with communities Engaging with implementing partners Stakeholder mapping and other resources GACD researcher-developed resources Communication skills for impact