International Partners Research Articles

Exploring the role of the JEEViKA swasthya mitra helpdesk in improving healthcare access: a qualitative study in tertiary healthcare facilities in Bihar, India

BackgroundRural populations in Bihar, India, face significant healthcare access challenges due to geographical, infrastructural, and financial barriers. The Swasthya Mitra program, initiated by the Bihar Rural Livelihood Promotion Society in collaboration with local and international partners, aims to mitigate these challenges by employing trained community members to navigate patients through the healthcare system.MethodsThis qualitative study employed in-depth interview and thematic analysis to evaluate the Swasthya Mitra program in the Bhagalpur and Jamui districts in Bihar, India. The participants included Swasthya Mitras, healthcare professionals, and beneficiaries. This study focused on understanding the role of Swasthya Mitras in facilitating healthcare services.FindingsThe program improved healthcare access for rural populations, with beneficiaries reporting reduced navigational confusion, decreased out-of-pocket expenditures, and enhanced patient care. Swasthya Mitras bridged the gap between the community and healthcare facilities. The program also empowered women, both Swasthya Mitras and beneficiaries, by improving their access to healthcare and increasing their involvement in health-related decision-making.InterpretationThe Swasthya Mitra program may offer a viable model for improving healthcare access in rural settings, demonstrating the importance of community involvement in healthcare delivery. The findings suggested that such programs can be instrumental in overcoming barriers to healthcare access and reducing financial burdens on vulnerable populations.FundingThe study was supported by the Bihar Rural Livelihood Promotion Society supported by the World Bank and Project Concern Internation India.

How Can International Business-to-Business Partnerships in Africa Contribute to Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals?

Following calls by international business scholars to pay attention to how multinational enterprises contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals, we make implementable recommendations for international B2B partnerships in Africa. We postulate that international businesses can alleviate extreme poverty and eradicate child labor by selecting ethical African suppliers. Furthermore, partners must exercise transparency in how they adopt clean and environmentally sound technologies. We also highlight that partners should demonstrate flexibility and open-mindedness to African indigenous know-how and sustainable practices to facilitate knowledge-sharing. International B2B partners may consider our recommendations to guide the building of ethical and responsible businesses in Africa.

Institutional Practices for Internationalization of Research at the University of Juba, South Sudan

Internationalization of research is a key pillar for a university’s global engagement. However, the extent of internationalization at the University of Juba remains unclear. This article examines institutional practices for research internationalization, gathering data from 14 knowledgeable participants. Findings identify a lack of resources, clear guidelines, and policies, with research largely limited to international collaborations and partnerships. The University of Juba should focus on developing comprehensive policies and guidelines that define a clear strategy, goals, and objectives for internationalizing research.

Engendering the Manufacturing Sector in Ethiopia: Uncovering the Controversy of Empowerment

Female workers have long been the face of the textile and garment manufacturing industry around the globe. They are considered as not only having naturally “nimble fingers,” but also being naturally more “docile and willing” to work in difficult situations. There is an underlying assumption that employment of women in the manufacturing industry will increase their job opportunities, enhance their access to and/or control over valuable resources, and empower them in decision-making. The development of the textile and garment manufacturing industry in Ethiopia has unquestionably opened employment opportunities for women constituting more than 80% of the labor force. By filling in an existing gap in research through addressing the workers’ self-perception of empowerment (referred to as mebkat in Amharic), this paper examines the emic views of how women perceive and experience empowerment. This is juxtaposed with an external definition of empowerment, as it is defined by the government and its international development partners, which presumes a positive correlation between employment and empowerment. Based on the case study of female factory workers in Hawassa Industrial Park in Southern Ethiopia and a closer analysis of research participants’ understanding of empowerment, this paper argues that Ethiopia’s budding manufacturing sector has not delivered on its promises.

It Is a Catch-22 Situation! A Decade of Research Trends on Gay Wellbeing in China: A Bibliometric Analysis.

The wellbeing of gay men in China is shaped by a combination of cultural, social, and political factors, yet research on this topic remains fragmented despite growing global interest in LGBTQ+ health. This study provides a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of research trends on wellbeing of gays (MSM) in China, using the PRISMA 2020 guidelines for a systematic search strategy and VOSviewer for bibliometric mapping. Data from Scopus were analyzed to examine publication output, top journals, and authors, along with a co-occurrence analysis of keywords and co-authorship networks across countries and authors. Results show a steady rise in publications over the past decade, particularly after 2015, revealing strong domestic collaboration and emerging international partnerships. The study identifies key contributing journals and themes, while revealing that most research remains narrowly focused on HIV/AIDS, leaving gaps in understanding gay wellbeing from broader societal and cultural perspectives. Surprisingly, very few studies specifically examine or measure overall wellbeing, whether using quantitative or qualitative approaches, and there is limited exploration of how cultural factors influence the experiences of gay men in China. These findings underscore the need for more holistic research approaches that move beyond public health and HIV prevention to address the psychological, social, and cultural dimensions of wellbeing.

Advancing personalized medicine: key priorities for clinical studies and funding systems based on a Europe-China collaborative Delphi survey.

Personalized medicine (PM) has the potential to revolutionize healthcare by delivering treatments tailored to individual patients based on their unique characteristics. However, ensuring its effective implementation presents complex challenges, particularly in terms of long-term sustainability. To address these challenges, the IC2PerMed project fosters collaboration between the European Union and China. This study, building on insights from the project, aims to identify key priorities for advancing PM, focusing on Clinical Studies and Funding Systems, with special attention to optimizing resource management, distribution, and protection to support sustainable development. A two-round Delphi survey was conducted to achieve consensus on common priorities among China and Europe related to Clinical Studies and Funding Systems. Consensus was measured using the Content Validity Index, requiring an agreement level of 80% or higher for item inclusion. The survey identified 20 key priorities in PM research, split evenly between research initiatives and funding mechanisms. Notable priorities include developing technology for deep phenotyping, standardizing methodological approaches, and fostering public-private collaborations. In funding, the emphasis was placed on involving patient voices in research design and establishing synergies among funders to support larger projects. The findings underscore the importance of structured collaboration between Europe and China in advancing personalised medicine. By addressing identified priorities in research and funding, this initiative can significantly enhance the efficacy of PM, ultimately improving healthcare outcomes globally. The study sets a precedent for future international partnerships aimed at fostering innovation in health sciences.

Resources or race? Explaining (un)equality in international development partnerships

ABSTRACT Whereas diversity can be observed in the type of North–South partnerships, overall the call for equality in the partnerships between Northern-based development organizations to their Southern-based counterparts, has hardly been successful. To come to an encompassing understanding of both this diversity and stagnation, in this study we combine two explanatory lines of reasoning: one focused on financial resources and one on racial perceptions. We study partnerships of Dutch-based development organizations working in Ghana, Burkina Faso and Kenya through this analytical lens. The research finds that there are three different narratives held by Northern organizations on citizens of countries where they work and their partner organization: a negative one, an internally inconsistent one and a reflective one. The data also shows there is a relation between the narratives and the type of partnerships: the negative narrative leads to repression, the internally inconsistent narrative to confusion and the reflective narrative to more inclusion. We conclude that histories of perceptions, including racial ones and systems of financial domination and dependence interact in multiple reinforcing ways, leading to different levels of equality in partnerships.

Global collaborations to change the paradigm of oral health education and care: 2024 ADEA Annual Session Chair of the Board Symposium, Proceedings.

The 2024 ADEA Annual Session Chair of the Board Symposium titled, Global Collaborations to Change the Paradigm in Oral Health Education and Care, aimed to highlight innovative global education models in oral health. The symposium sought to identify and explore opportunities for collaboration with international partners to ensure sustainable healthcare education to improve the oral health workforce. Additionally, it focused on discovering and adapting innovative solutions and best practices to enhance access to oral health services worldwide.

Implications of the fair processes for financing UHC report for development assistance: reflections and an application of the decision-making principles to PEPFAR.

The framework presented in the World Bank report Open and Inclusive: Fair processes for Financing Universal Health Coverage effectively connects proposed decision-making principles with practical examples that country governments can use to pursue greater fairness. In this commentary, we consider the suggestion that international development partners might use the report's criteria to examine their own processes. We consider what the report's primary Fair Process principles - equality, impartiality and consistency - imply for development partners. Specifically, we address two questions in turn: (i) how relevant the Fair Processes report is to development assistance for health; (ii) if it is deemed relevant, what practical implications does the report have for how aid works? We address the second question by briefly applying the framework to a particular global health initiative, namely the United States President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Our analysis suggests that development partners' additional sets of accountabilities, particularly linked to funding sources, may pose more fundamental challenges to impartiality than to equality and consistency in decision-making processes. A question inviting further examination, then, is how development partners can redesign their processes to optimise impartiality given institutional constraints that bind them independently of the populations they purport to serve.

Integrated Water Resources Management After 2030: An Agenda for Educators

This paper addresses the need to improve the understanding of how integrated water resources management (IWRM) can be more effective in addressing diverse water challenges globally. The emphasis is on the use of systems methods to clarify IWRM and create support for it among the academic community for emphasis after the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) expire in 2030. The importance of using IWRM is apparent in frequent reports about challenges like access to water supply and sanitation, water-related disasters, water stresses, water pollution, and ecosystem losses. These affect the SDGs, especially Goal 6 for implementation of IWRM. Among competing paradigms for water resources management practice, IWRM has a more organized advocacy base than others, and sustaining it can support all of them. However, IWRM has been supported for more than 20 years and is still difficult to understand and criticized. Despite this, sustained support for it indicates that it meets an important need. Systems concepts of problem archetypes, skeletonization, and the concept of emergence were used to create a model to explain IWRM as a framework of institutional arrangements and a cooperative problem-solving process. A set of four synthesized problem archetypes was developed, and stakeholder analysis was used to identify key disciplines for its implementation and to identify the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed among them. These point the way for academics to develop clear explanations while retaining comprehensive perspectives of IWRM. Building and sustaining a viable academic community to support IWRM will face barriers because academics focus mainly on their disciplines where they are rewarded and recognized. This is also evident in the smaller membership bases of interdisciplinary water associations compared to disciplinary or sector-based water associations. IWRM as an organizing platform for cross-sector water resources management has a long-term future if academics focus on it and its support by international partners continues. By explaining IWRM better and marshalling greater support for it among the academic community, the same approach of clarifying ambiguous concepts and providing better ways to engage academia may help other SDG areas.

Morocco's cybersecurity strategy between challenges and aspirations

The threats and challenges associated with the cyberspace have increased, and no country is excluded from its economic, social and cultural activities on the Internet, and Morocco has also not been spared some digital machinations to harm its cyberspace. For this reason, the contours of its cyber strategy have been prominent since 2012 to counter the risks coming from the virtual world. This strategy focused on the establishment of national institutions specialized in cyber securitization, benefiting from international and regional partnerships, and did not neglect the issuance of laws and the signing of regulatory agreements. But this strategy has run into some challenges resulting from legal loopholes and treaty reservations. Despite these challenges, Morocco has registered a strong desire to develop its capabilities and strengthen its position in the global cybersecurity index, by benefiting from international experiences and foreign companies specialized in cyber issues, and by including digital education in its university institutions.

Nationwide cervical precancer screening in Ghana: concurrent HPV DNA testing and visual inspection under an expanded hub-and-spoke model

Cervical cancer continues to disproportionately burden women in sub-Saharan Africa, and is the commonest gynecological cancer in Ghana. The Cervical Cancer Prevention and Training Centre (CCPTC), Battor, Ghana spearheaded the Ghana arm of the mPharma 10,000 Women Initiative (mTTWI) between September 2021 and October 2022. The aim of this study was to examine the outcomes of nationwide concurrent screening using high-risk human papillomavirus (hr-HPV) DNA testing and visual inspection methods, as well as factors associated with the screening outcomes. We conducted a descriptive retrospective cross-sectional study to estimate the prevalence of hr-HPV infection (nationally and regionally) and cervical lesions among women screened by graduates of our training center in their own settings (spokes) with remote supervision and mentoring by CCPTC trainers (hub). We modeled factors associated with hr-HPV infection using nominal logistic regression. Among 5217 women screened (mean age, 40.1 years), the overall prevalence of hr-HPV infection and cervical lesions were 29.1% (95% confidence interval [CI] 27.9–30.3) and 3.7% (95% CI 3.2–4.2), respectively. The prevalence distribution varied widely among regions, with the highest recorded in the Oti Region (32.8%) and the lowest recorded in the Upper West (20.7%) and North-East (20.7%) regions. The most frequently detected HPV genotype was other hr-HPV type(s) only (non-HPV16, non-HPV18) (23.5%; 95% CI 22.3–24.7), followed by HPV16 only (1.5%; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), and mixed infection with HPV18 + other hr-HPV type(s) (1.2%; 95% CI 0.9–1.5). Factors found to be significantly associated with hr-HPV infection among women screened included age < 35 years, having a relationship status apart from married/cohabitation, nulliparity, and HIV positivity. Drawing from our implementation of this model within the mTTWI, we posit that while Ghana prepares for organized screening, coordinating opportunistic screening could enable a phased expansion of cervical precancer screening with the help of international and local partners. This approach, combined with concurrent testing (hr-HPV DNA testing and visual inspection), holds promise for mitigating loss to follow-up among women requiring additional evaluation and lesion management.

Implementation of integrated services of intelligent supply chains by leading Chinese logistics companies.

The article examines the restructuring of global supply chains within the framework of the active development of China’s logistics services market. It is established that with the continuous improvement of the country’s digital economy, these services can become one of the important directions for the development of large Chinese companies operating in this industry. The purpose of the work is to study the implementation of integrated intelligent supply chain services, analyze the practice of their application, and their impact on the growth of turnover and income of leading logistics enterprises in the country — Xiamen C&amp;D Group Corp. Ltd., SF Express Holding, YTO Express — in 2021–2023. The paper describes the step-by-step mechanism of the intelligent supply chains of Chinese companies and its innovative component. It is determined that the studied organizations adhere to the principle of digital excellence, promote digital industrialization, jointly create a common logistics big data platform (the country’s digital logistics ecosystem), and apply new business formats and a modern logistics model to facilitate the industrial transformation and modernization of China’s economy. To achieve the goals of the study and analyze the restructuring of global supply chains within the framework of the active development of China’s logistics services market, methods of scientific analysis of scientific literature and economic analysis of reports of leading logistics companies in China, comparative analysis, content analysis, and case studies were used to study examples of the implementation of intelligent supply chains in Xiamen C&amp;D Group Corp. Ltd., SF Express Holding, YTO Express. The results of the research can be useful for international organizations and partners of China engaged in joint logistics projects and initiatives to enhance cooperation and coordination efforts.

VIETNAM’S COMPREHENSIVE EDUCATIONAL REFORM

This study evaluates the progress of Vietnam’s educational reform, initiated under Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW in 2013, which aimed to align the nation’s education system with socio-economic objectives such as industrialization, modernization, and global integration. Using a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative and qualitative analyses, the research examines achievements, challenges, and limitations across key areas such as learner-centered education, digital transformation, teacher development, and internationalization. Significant progress has been observed, including the universalization of preschool education, improvements in teacher qualifications, and the integration of digital tools, positioning Vietnam as a regional leader in education. However, challenges remain, including insufficient preparation of financial and human resources, inconsistent policy implementation, and the lack of a cohesive educational philosophy. Persistent inequities, outdated teaching methodologies, and limited alignment with labor market demands further constrain reform efforts. The findings emphasize the importance of targeted investments in teacher training, infrastructure, and governance, alongside fostering stronger international partnerships. This study highlights Vietnam’s potential to establish a globally competitive education system and provides actionable recommendations for addressing systemic barriers. The results contribute to global discussions on educational reform in developing nations, offering lessons for sustainable and equitable transformation.

Designing, implementing and evaluating multidisciplinary healthcare training programmes in the wartime humanitarian context of Ukraine

IntroductionCivilian healthcare workers (HCW) and medical facilities are directly and indirectly impacted by armed conflict. In the Russia-Ukraine war, acute trauma care needs grew, the workforce was destabilised by HCW...

Roadmap to advance therapeutics for SYNGAP1-related disorder: a patient organization perspective from SynGAP Research Fund

SYNGAP1-related disorder (SRD) is a developmental and epileptic encephalopathy caused by a disruption of the SYNGAP1 gene. At the beginning of 2024, it is one of many rare monogenic brain disorders without disease-modifying treatments, but that is changing. This article chronicles the last 5 years, beginning when treatments for SRD were not publicly in development, to the start of 2024 when many SRD-specific treatments are advancing. We discuss the progress across many realms that have brought SRD to the forefront of drug development and highlight how Patient Advocacy Groups (PAGs) have had direct roles in accelerating the route to meaningful treatments for our children. We start with a summary of why SRD is an attractive pharmaceutical target. Second, we introduce the disease, the clinical features, and the number of patients. Next, we describe our PAG, our international partners and cite examples of the broad range of activities we believe are accelerating our pace toward treatments. We summarize the current SYNGAP1 pipeline and the status of each public project. Finally, we discuss two open questions that urgently need to be addressed in advance of clinical trials for SRD.

The PANDEM-2 Simulation Exercise: Training the Coordinated Response to a Large-Scale Pandemic in 2 European Public Health Emergency Operations Centers.

In the course of the EU funded Pandemic Preparedness and Response (PANDEM-2) project, a functional exercise (FX) was conducted to train the coordinated response to a large-scale pandemic event in Europe by using new IT solutions developed by the project. This report provides an overview of the steps involved in planning, conducting, and evaluating the FX. The FX design was based on the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) simulation exercise cycle for public health settings and was carried out over 2 days in the German and Dutch national public health institutes (PHI), with support from other consortium PHIs. The planning team devised an inject list based on a scenario script describing the emergence of an influenza pandemic from a novel H5N1 pathogen. The multi-disciplinary participant teams included 11 Dutch and 6 German participants. The FX was supported by 9 international project partners from 8 countries. Overall, participants and observers agreed that the FX goals were achieved. The FX was a suitable format to test the PANDEM-2 solutions in 2 different country set-ups. It demonstrated the benefit of regular simulation exercises at member state level to test and practice public health emergency responses to be better prepared for real-life events.

CTGCT, Centre of Excellence for the Technologies of Gene and Cell Therapy: Collaborative Translation of Scientific Discoveries into Advanced Treatments for Neurological Rare Genetic Diseases and Cancer

The emerging field of precision medicine relies on scientific breakthroughs to understand disease mechanisms and develop cutting-edge technologies to overcome underlying genetic and functional aberrations. The establishment of the Centre of Excellence for the Technologies of Gene and Cell Therapy (CTGCT) at the National Institute of Chemistry (NIC) in Ljubljana represents a significant step forward, as it is the first centre of its kind in Slovenia. The CTGCT is poised to spearhead advances in cancer immunotherapy and personalised therapies for neurological and other rare genetic diseases. The centre’s overarching mission is to extend beyond the NIC’s scientific excellence in basic research and bring new therapeutic solutions toward clinical application. The CTGCT aims to develop a broad pipeline of biomedical tools, including innovative synthetic biology tools, gene editing and splicing technologies, RNA-based technologies, immune regulation engineering and novel viral and non-viral delivery systems. The CTGCT is supported by partner institutions from the UK, the Netherlands and Germany, which already have academic good manufacturing practice (GMP) facilities for the manufacture of advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) and is committed to active collaboration with clinicians and patient organizations at all stages of development to improve access to gene and cell therapies (GCTs) for patients. The Centre also seeks to collaborate with national and international academic and industrial partners, and the newly established GMP facilities will address a critical bottleneck in the translation of GCTs from research to practice. Finally, CTGCT's translational research and technology transfer units will ensure the impactful dissemination of research and innovation activities in Slovenia, throughout the Western Balkans and Eastern Europe region, and beyond. With its comprehensive approach and forward-looking vision, the CTGCT will drive transformative advances in gene and cell therapies for the benefit of patients on a global scale.

The Influence of Visionary Leadership on The Success of Organizational Transformation

Visionary leadership plays a crucial role in determining the success of organizational transformation, particularly in addressing the challenges of a dynamic, complex, and uncertain environment. This research aims to examine the influence of visionary leadership on the success of organizational transformation through a qualitative approach, employing a case study method. The study was conducted at the National Defense Institute of the Republic of Indonesia (LEMHANAS), which is undergoing significant transformation to enhance its competitiveness and relevance in the modern era. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with key stakeholders, participant observation of organizational activities, and document analysis of relevant institutional records to gain a comprehensive understanding of how visionary leadership impacts organizational transformation. The results demonstrate that visionary leadership significantly influences various aspects of organizational transformation. For example, visionary leaders drive structural changes by decentralizing decision-making processes, enabling greater agility and responsiveness within the organization. They foster a collaborative work culture that emphasizes innovation and adaptability, encouraging employees to actively participate in change initiatives. Moreover, visionary leaders articulate a long-term strategic vision that aligns organizational efforts towards sustainable growth and development, ensuring that transformation objectives are coherent and attainable. Specific evidence from the LEMHANAS case study underscores the impact of visionary leadership in several areas. First, the modernization of infrastructure and adoption of advanced technologies have enhanced the institute’s operational efficiency. Second, the strengthening of cross-sector cooperation has facilitated better alignment of national and international partnerships, contributing to a broader institutional impact. Third, a shift in organizational culture towards performance orientation, transparency, and accountability has significantly improved employee engagement and trust in leadership. This research contributes both theoretically and practically to the understanding of visionary leadership as a primary catalyst for successful organizational transformation. By providing actionable insights and strategies, the findings serve as a valuable reference for other organizations aiming to design effective and sustainable transformation initiatives.

ANTI-CORRUPTION AUDIT OF COMPANIES AND FORESIGHT ANALYSIS IN TERMS OF THE STATE'S EUROPEAN INTEGRATION ECONOMIC POLICY

The article examines the current problems of spreading corruption in Ukraine. It has been established that corruption is a negative socio-economic phenomenon that restrains the state's economic development, reduces trust in the authorities and complicates the fight against Russia's military aggression. The coming years will be indicative for Ukraine's international partners in the context of assessing the effectiveness of national anti-corruption policy, and the degree of implementation of planned anti-corruption reforms, which will indicate the level of integration of European values into society and Ukraine's readiness to become a full member of the EU. The perception of the main corruption problems by the public and business was analyzed, and it was established that the general attitude of Ukraine towards corruption is shifting towards intolerance of this negative phenomenon. Based on the analysis of the dynamics of detected financial violations by the State Audit Service of Ukraine in the region for 2019-2023, the TOP-3 conditional regions that are prone to violations, including corruption, have been determined. A trend analysis of the volume of financial violations was carried out, which proved the average annual changes in the volume of the number of accrued violations for the years 2019-2023 and allowed us to make a forecast for 2026. The results of the foresight analysis show that the volume of financial violations in 2026 may reach the level of UAH 68,956.5 thousand. Accounting criminal and administrative violations by types of corruption during 2019-2023 were studied. The structural analysis of violations for 2019-2022 shows that the top three corruption methods included: an offer, a promise or the granting of an undue advantage to an official (21,9%); failure to take appropriate measures to combat corruption crimes (15,7%); declaring false information (12,8%). The analysis confirmed the significance of anti-corruption audits of companies and the formation of an anti-corruption independent audit system.