More funding is needed for research and development for drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics to combat neglected diseases. It’s a statement that BIO Ventures for Global Health (BVGH) makes often and the key assumption that underlies our very existence as an organization. How do we know that it’s true? The G-FINDER report is one source.

In 2008, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commissioned The George Institute for International Health, a non-profit whose mission is to improve the health of millions of people worldwide by providing the best evidence to guide critical health decisions and engaging with decision makers to enact real change, to conduct five annual surveys. The surveys, occurring from 2008 to 2012, analyze current funding for 31 neglected diseases. The surveys exist to help funders better understand where the gaps lie and how their investments fit into the global picture. After all, BVGH isn’t the only group that believes that more research and development is essential for neglected diseases, many organizations and individuals are also putting their efforts behind it.

To date, the George Institute has produced two G-FINDER reports, and work for the third is underway now. The value of the study is clearly shown in the comparison of 2007 to 2008. In 2008, nearly $3 billion was spent on neglected diseases -- a mere 3.9% increase over 2007. The study showed that funding was cut in high-income countries, unilateral funding was decreased, and investment by small companies was down by half. It was multinational companies, whose funding held steady, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, who increased funding, that provided for that slight bump over the previous year.

This is essential information. And the issue of funding becomes more important when you consider that 3 of the 31 neglected diseases profiled -- HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis -- accounted for nearly three-quarters of the investment. The other 28 diseases were severely underfunded while still killing millions, with many of these diseases lacking enough R&D funding to produce even a single product.

Last year 42 biotechs participated in the G-FINDER survey. The George Institute is hopeful that that number will grow this year. In fact, this year’s survey reaches out to the biotech sectors in emerging markets including India, South Africa, and Brazil.

Surveys were sent out in early March and the deadline for companies to submit their information is fast approaching on June 4. BVGH would like to encourage all companies who received a request from The George Institute to complete the survey and provide critical information that will help determine where the biggest gaps in funding for neglected diseases exist. The first and second G-FINDER reports contributed to new attention in several neglected areas in which biotechs are active, including diagnostics, which helped inform the recent BVGH Diagnostics Innovation Map.  But it’s not one-sided. The G-FINDER also provides a reference for firms involved in neglected disease R&D, including lists of funders in each area.

To read the significant findings of the 2008 and 2009 G-FINDER reports, visit The George Institute Web site.

Read the 2008 report here and the full 2009 report here.

Read the BVGH Diagnostics Innovation Map here.

Jennifer Manganello is the Development Associate at BIO Ventures for Global Health.