Revision Applications for U.S-South Africa Program for Collaborative Biomedical Research (R01) | RFA AI 16 082

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA AI 16 082

The grant opportunity titled "Revision Applications for U.S-South Africa Program for Collaborative Biomedical Research (R01)" is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding announcement that supports revision applications to existing R01-funded collaborative projects under the broader U.S.-South Africa Program for Collaborative Biomedical Research. In plain terms, this FOA is not primarily about starting brand-new, unrelated projects from scratch; it is about adding or expanding specific activities to an already funded research program through a formal revision request. The overall goal is to strengthen and extend ongoing U.S.-South Africa scientific partnerships in high-priority health areas that have major public health impact in South Africa and globally.

A central purpose of this revision-focused funding is workforce development through research collaboration, specifically by expanding the pool of South African investigators from underrepresented backgrounds in the country's workforce. The FOA emphasizes increasing participation and engagement of these investigators in active, collaborative biomedical research settings, rather than limiting support to general training disconnected from funded science. The intent is to help address inequities in representation within the research workforce while also building scientific capacity and leadership within South Africa through hands-on involvement in funded projects.

The scientific scope is targeted and tied to pressing infectious disease and related health burdens. The FOA highlights tuberculosis (TB) and HIV/AIDS as core areas, and it explicitly includes both biomedical and behavioral science approaches to HIV/AIDS. In addition, it covers HIV-related co-morbidities, including malignancies, which reflects the reality that people living with HIV can face elevated risks for certain cancers and other conditions, and that integrated research is needed to understand and address these interconnected health challenges. By allowing revisions to expand activities in these areas, the FOA supports work that can range from laboratory and clinical research to behavioral and implementation-focused studies, as long as the added activities align with the parent collaborative project and the FOA's priorities.

In terms of eligibility, the opportunity is issued as a discretionary grant under the NIH R01 activity mechanism, and the source data lists public and state-controlled institutions of higher education as eligible applicants. The FOA also makes an important distinction about international participation. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign institutions) are eligible to apply, which is consistent with the U.S.-South Africa collaboration focus and enables South African institutions to serve as applicants where permitted by NIH policy and the specific FOA terms. At the same time, the FOA states that non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply, and it also states that foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are not allowed. Practically, these rules mean applicants must pay close attention to how their institutional structure and collaborations are categorized under NIH definitions, because a "foreign institution" applicant may be allowed while a "foreign component" of a U.S. applicant may not be, and those are not interchangeable under NIH policy.

Administratively, the funding opportunity number is RFA AI 16 082, it was created on December 8, 2016, and it had an original closing date of March 28, 2017. The sponsoring agency is NIH, and the listed CFDA numbers (93.242, 93.393, 93.399, 93.855, 93.856, 93.865) indicate it is associated with multiple NIH program authorities spanning health research and related areas. The source data does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, suggesting applicants would need to rely on the full FOA text and related NIH guidance for budget expectations, allowable costs, and the anticipated scale of support.

Overall, this FOA can be understood as a targeted mechanism to add value to existing U.S.-South Africa R01 collaborations by funding well-justified expansions that both advance research on TB, HIV/AIDS, and HIV-related co-morbidities (including cancers) and deliberately strengthen the participation and development of underrepresented South African investigators within those collaborative research efforts.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health, income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Revision Applications for U.S-South Africa Program for Collaborative Biomedical Research (R01)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.242, 93.393, 93.399, 93.855, 93.856, 93.865.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2016-12-08.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-03-28. (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.

Apply for RFA AI 16 082

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