History

Following a report by the ICDDR,B(International Centre for Diarrhoeal Diseases Research in Bangladesh http://www.icddrb.org) to the World Health Organization in 2007, COHRED and ICDDR,B teamed up with others to focus on ‘Improving International Research Contracting’. (Bulletin of the WHO 2009; 87: 487. doi:10.2471/BLT.08.058099. http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/87/7/08-058099.pdf?ua=1)

is created as a result of this meeting – and becomes a separate line of technical support and freely available resource materials offered by COHRED offers. (www.cohred.org/frc)

Soon after, a small CFI team was created to begin writing the concept and first papers – to give voice to the idea of a COHRED Fairness Index. The ‘Core Writing Team’ consists of COHRED staff, associates and other experts who volunteer their time and insights to update the concept, provide information materials for the Technical Working Group and for Global Consultations. The team is managed as a ‘secretariat’ by COHRED.

The TWG1 worked through 5 questionnaires during the period from June –September 2014. Resulting from this was a first version of the COHRED Fairness Index or CFI. (download document)

This document was put on our website for global consultation for a period of about 2 months – 21 January – 27 March 2015. Based on comments received, a revised document was produced for a ‘face-to-face’ Global Consultation 2.

In view of a new approach, a new Technical Working Group is being established (TWG2). The aim of this phase is to review the new approach and ensure that the views and interests of all essential users of the future RFI are represented and heard.Once the RFI is active, we expect that the TWG2 may give way to a governance body of users to which COHRED will provide the services of the Secretariat. The standards and benchmarks, however, will be set by the TWG2 and future Board of the RFI. Therefore, be sure to make your interest in joining the TWG2 known to the RFI Team.

2018 has been earmarked for global implementation of the RFI, and several reports will be published, including those of TDR, IHMT, UADB, IRESSEF and CEA-SAMEF. Why not be an early adopter yourself?