In this review, the ICAI/Agulhas team assessed whether the GCRF has the governance arrangements, systems and procedures in place to allocate funds effectively in support of its high-level vision and objectives. The review evaluated the emerging processes for setting its strategy and research priorities, the coordination and management of the Fund, the allocation of funding and the assessment of results. It looked at the composition of the emerging portfolio and at the role of the GCRF alongside other government instruments and programmes for funding Official Development Assistance (ODA) research.
ICAI’s review found that the fund had begun to innovate in useful ways, particularly by promoting interdisciplinary work on complex challenges such as non-communicable diseases and forced displacement.
However it found that aspects of the fund’s strategy, governance arrangements, and procedures were not yet clear or strong enough, and called on it to improve its systems in order to deliver its objectives more effectively, and achieve value for money.
