SciDev.Net

An international NGO, TWNSO was founded at the initiative of the Third World Academy of Sciences by ministers of science and technology and higher education and heads of science academies and research councils in developing countries to promote science-based sustainable economic development.

The Global Forum for Health Research provides evidence, tools and discussion forums for decision-makers in research funding and policy to improve the health of the poor. Although it covers issues for both infectious and non-communicable diseases, the agency recognises that mental health problems are severely neglected in developing countries. As well as links to various publications and reports, the website also hosts RealHealthNews, which aims to share news on research and interventions that can improve the health of those in developing countries.

The INCTR is dedicated to helping build capacity for cancer treatment and research in countries in which such capacity is limited. The network, which has support from the US National Cancer Institute, aims to build capacity for cancer treatment and research in countries with limited resources through long-term collaborative projects coupled to training and educational programmes. It also seeks to promote international collaboration on cancer control between developed and developing countries. The INCTR is located at the Institut Pasteur in Brussels but also has branches in the US, France, Brazil, Egypt and Nepal and offices in the UK, India and Tanzania. The website contains details of the network's activities in various countries.

SSI was set up in 2001 to facilitate sharing of resources among research groups in Africa, Asia and Latin America in order to increase competitiveness and optimise scientific opportunities. It provides assistance for proposal development through annual workshops and helps organise annual training courses on leading-edge technology for tropical disease research application in disease endemic countries.

TWOWS is an international forum aimed at uniting eminent women scientists from the South with the objective of strengthening their role in development and in scientific and technological leadership. An independent, non-profit, non-governmental body based at the offices of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World in Italy, its activities include providing fellowships and maintaining an inventory of women scientists in the South.

Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1978 and hosted by the UN Development Programme, the unit’s primary mandate is to promote, coordinate and support South–South cooperation and cooperation with the UN. It focuses on policy dialogue and development, public–private partnership and southern development exchange.

The WHO Global InfoBase has, for the first time, assembled in one place, country-level risk factor data stratified by age and sex, with complete source and survey information. The current version of the InfoBase contains over 130,000 data points from more than 2,800 sources. Currently the InfoBase contains reports on 180 out of 192 WHO Member States. A unique feature is that each record can be linked back to all its survey information, including the primary source.

The database is updated daily and provides users with comparable country-level mortality, mean systolic blood pressure, mean body mass index, and overweight/obesity data. A search function allows users to customise their data search based on specific criteria, and shows data in text tables and graphs.

The foundation's aim is to raise awareness of diabetes worldwide, with a special emphasis on developing countries. A key activity is funding projects (142 so far) that raise awareness, improve education and build capacity at local, regional and global levels. The website contains details of all ongoing projects, including details of the project budgets and individuals responsible for running them, the expected impacts and results so far. Importantly, the foundation prioritises monitoring and evaluation of its projects to learn key lessons for the future and minimise the risk of project failure.

As with any disease, and particularly those in developing countries, the health economics are important. The website has a useful tool for calculating the economic cost of diabetes in a particular country that allows the user to change variables such as population, prevalence and so on.

This section of the WHO's website includes factsheets on chronic diseases, details of the agency's relevant activities and programmes, and detailed technical information about action plan that the agency backs.

Also included are links to key reports on chronic diseases (detailed in the Reports section of Key Documents)