Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D43 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 21 120

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 21 120

The Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D43 Clinical Trial Optional), Funding Opportunity Number PAR-21-120, is an NIH grant opportunity that supports collaborative research training programs designed to build and strengthen infectious disease research capacity in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The program is structured around joint applications led by partnerships between a U.S. institution and an LMIC institution, with the central goal of helping the LMIC partner develop durable, locally grounded expertise, mentorship, and infrastructure needed to conduct high-quality infectious disease research. In practical terms, the FOA is looking for training programs that are not just short-term workshops, but sustained, mentored pipelines that prepare researchers to address health priorities in LMIC settings and to continue as independent contributors and leaders in the field.

The scientific scope is intentionally broad within infectious diseases, emphasizing work that addresses major endemic infections, life-threatening emerging infectious diseases, and neglected tropical diseases. It also highlights infections that commonly occur as co-infections among people living with HIV, as well as infections connected to non-communicable disease conditions that are major public health concerns in LMICs. The FOA supports training across a wide range of research approaches, including basic science, epidemiology, clinical research, behavioral research, and social science research, as long as the focus is relevant to prevention, treatment, or public health strategies for infectious diseases. This flexibility allows programs to be tailored to local disease burdens and research gaps, rather than forcing a one-size-fits-all training model.

A key expectation is that proposed training programs combine multiple elements that collectively build competent, independent researchers. This includes structured didactic instruction, mentored research experiences, and career development skill-building. The intent is to produce trainees who can move into impactful careers aligned with LMIC priority health research needs, meaning trainees should graduate from the program with real research experience, stronger scientific and professional skills, and a clearer path toward sustained productivity and leadership. Mentorship is central to the model, implying that programs should have clear plans for supervision, research guidance, and the progression of trainees from learning to execution to dissemination.

Clinical trials are allowed but not required, and the FOA is designed to accommodate several realistic ways trainees might gain clinical trial experience. Trainees may be supported as lead investigators on an independent clinical trial, as lead investigators on an ancillary clinical trial, or as trainees gaining research experience within a clinical trial led by another investigator as part of their career development. This "clinical trial optional" structure is meant to encourage rigorous hands-on training where appropriate, without excluding training programs that focus on other kinds of infectious disease research.

Eligibility includes a range of higher-education institutions and other applicant types, including public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, and additional eligible entities. The FOA explicitly notes that certain institution types are included among other eligible applicants, such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs). Foreign (non-U.S.) institutions are eligible to apply, but non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply, drawing a distinction between a fully foreign institution applicant versus an overseas branch or component of a U.S. organization.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant under NIH in the health funding activity category, with CFDA numbers 93.855 and 93.989. The opportunity was created on 2021-02-17, and the original closing date listed is 2023-08-03. The provided source data does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, which typically means applicants need to consult the full FOA details and NIH institute guidance for budget expectations, project period norms, and any constraints that may apply. Overall, the program is best understood as a capacity-building training mechanism: it funds partnerships that train researchers in LMICs through rigorous coursework, mentored research, and professional development, focused on infectious disease priorities with optional clinical trial involvement when it strengthens training outcomes.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Global Infectious Disease Research Training Program (D43 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.855, 93.989.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-02-17.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-08-03. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Others.

Apply for PAR 21 120

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