As the second set of the three units from the strategic courses on strengthening research for health managerial capacities gets underway, let us take this opportunity to explain a bit more about these courses, our role and why we are excited about them.

To start with, the three courses are focused on: policies for research for health, evaluation and monitoring of research for health systems, and the use of research results. And they are specifically targeted at research for health managers in low and middle-income countries.

The focus on these particular areas and target groups is also in line with recommendations from our two previous Latin-American Conferences on Research and Innovation for Health where specific calls have been made for the education and training of professionals and for more shared learning between policy makers and researchers including those from high-income countries.

For the first unit, we had over forty participants from countries in Latin America, Africa, and Europe. Participants in the unit used online platforms provided by our Mexican partner, the National Institute of Public Heath (INSP) to access the course materials and to share knowledge and collaborate on assignments, as well as for the live sessions.

The second unit, which starts on August 13th and ends on September 7th, will focus on the development of a consensual set of indicators for monitoring and evaluation of research for health in the region. This is important because it will help countries understand why policies on monitoring and evaluation are helpful and why they should have specific mechanisms for developing them in order to build sustainable research for health systems.

Each unit (three in total) have twenty (20) hours of personal and group work, and ten (10 hours of) live sessions – two and a half hours each week for four weeks. The three courses are the result of the project on Research for Health Managerial Capacity Building in Latin America. Part of the aim of the courses is to translate the ideas generated into policy actions at the regional and national levels.

The course is being run by the Council on Health Research for Development (COHRED), in partnership with the Ibero-American Ministerial Network for Learning and Health Research (RIMAIS) and with funding from the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development (AECID). INSP in Mexico is providing the internet platforms, assisting with instructional design and will also award academic certificates to the participants that will complete the courses.