Current
Initiatives

Grand Challenges African Drug Discovery Accelerator (GC ADDA)

With support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and LifeArc, we’ve established the GC ADDA network of drug discovery researchers on unmet medical needs faced by the African patient. By 2024, the network linked 8 African countries, with an initial 4 flagship projects focused on infectious disease and drug discovery research.

Matrix Integrated Special Project (ISP)

A major funding boost from USAID through MATRIX, a project to advance the research and development of innovative HIV prevention products for women, has enabled us to develop an integrated special project to evaluate an innovative continuous flow technology for cost-effective manufacturing of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in South Africa. 

AI2050: Developing open-source AI models for optimal drug discovery in Africa

An initiative of Schmidt Sciences, AI2050 seeks to ensure Artificial Intelligence’s (AI) benefit to society by supporting the work of individuals who are harnessing AI to solve the hardest problems in their respective fields.  This fellowship will support the H3D Foundation’s mission to unlock sustainable drug discovery in Africa.

Global Health
Mentorship Programme

Building on the successful mentorship programme at the H3D Drug Discovery and Development centre in 2019-2020, the H3D Foundation manages an African-wide Global Health Mentorship Programme offering mentees scientific leadership training and specialised mentorship from industry partners. 

Training in Drug Discovery and Related Sciences

Find out more about current and upcoming training opportunities, as well as the successful workshops and programmes we’ve hosted in the past. 

Thought Leadership

As an organisation at the forefront of drug discovery and development in Africa and beyond, we take our role as thought leaders seriously and seek opportunities to share insights from hard-won, real life experience.

Past

Initiatives

Targeted HDI Drug Discovery Capacity Building

Historically Disadvantaged Institutions (HDI) in South Africa still face the enormous challenge of overcoming historical inequalities to close the gap the research impact of HDIs and world class institutions.

Grand Challenges (GC) Africa Drug Discovery

The African Academy of Sciences (AAS), through its Grand Challenges programme, The Drug Discovery and Development Centre (H3D) at the University of Cape Town (UCT), Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) came together in 2018 to expand and strengthen the drug discovery community in Africa.