Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Immunization Grant Program

Deadline: 9-Aug-23
The Immunization Program Strategy Team at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is requesting proposals for a rapid learning project to understand drivers of drop out from the primary infant series to the 9-month touch point to and identify approaches to increase retention.

This project will complement the zero-dose work that is a focus of the Foundation, Gavi and Alliance partners – while the zero-dose work focuses on access (identifying and reaching children never touched by the immunization system) this project will focus on retention (how do they keep families in the immunization program and reduce the number of MCV0 children?).

While immunizations are scheduled to be delivered at 9 months, timeliness challenges are well-documented globally. The research should be able to understand the age at which MCV (and all other 9-month touch point antigens relevant to the country) are actually administered, as well as document relevant time points at which caregivers are bringing their children to health facilities for other services.

Goals

• Analysis/synthesis of existing data and primary data collection from EPI, HCWs, and caregivers are anticipated.
  • Project design should detail how the deployment will be rapid and solutions oriented. The approach may require a series of sprints to learn and adapt during the course of the project.
  • Identify opportunities to improve access and engagement at this touchpoint and reduce dropout from DTP3 to MCV1 using a lens of human-centered design. Outcomes of the learning agenda should be clearly linked to potential interventions, whether focused on systems, behavior, communications (e.g. demand creation), etc. Participatory design with the community, health workers and local government is encouraged.
  • Share findings with local governments, regional and global partners to improve coverage of MCV and other 9-month immunizations.

Expected Outputs

• The following deliverables are expected from this grant:
  • Inception report outlining methodologies and work plan.
    • Government engagement and alignment on methodology will be an important milestone.
  • Monthly email/meeting updates on progress.
  • Final report and presentations to local, regional and global partners.
  • Publication(s) of findings.

Geography Focus

• The project will include several (4+) countries to gather varied perspectives and identify common themes. The following countries have been shortlisted as priority interest (based on the Measles and Rubella Initiative focus, country population, MCV1 coverage, and dropout from DTP3), but they are open to considering other geographies with strong rationale and country interest:
  • Angola
  • Burkina Faso
  • DRC
  • Ethiopia
  • Liberia
  • Madagascar
  • Mali
  • Niger
  • Nigeria
  • Pakistan
• The countries will be determined as part of the grant development and applicants should propose geographies for focus, including rationale. All countries proposed should be Gavi-eligible or Gavi-transitioned.

Timeline

• As this is a rapid learning project, the expected grant timeline to be 2 years.

Criteria

• Multiple application types are welcome for concept note submission including the following:
  • One organization who will conduct work across all countries, or;
  • A consortium of partners with a primary grantee identified who will coordinate across the other partners and countries and who will be the focal point for Gates Foundation engagement, or;
  • An organization that can support 1 or more countries and is willing to be part of a consortium of partners, to be determined and co-created with the Gates Foundation team.
    • If you submit for work in a single country, please also indicate if your organization is well-placed to serve as the primary grantee and coordinate across the partners, including rationale.
  • For-profit organizations will not be considered for this grant.

For more information, visit Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.