BEIJING -- The National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (Gates Foundation) recently announced the seven research proposals chosen for their joint program aimed at improving regulatory effectiveness and strengthening vaccine development.

Each selected proposal will receive funding of up to 750,000 yuan ($102,500) from the NSFC and up to $125,000 from the Gates Foundation.

The joint program, announced in late March 2023, received a total of 29 eligible proposals. After thorough review and evaluation by a panel of Chinese and international experts, seven proposals were jointly selected by the two foundations.

All of the winning proposals are led by researchers from Chinese universities and research institutes in collaboration with international partners, the NSFC said.

The joint program called for proposals on developing new regulatory science systems, tools, and methodologies to ensure vaccine quality, safety, and efficacy throughout its lifecycle.

It prioritized research in four key areas: policies and pathways to improve effectiveness of vaccine regulation; vaccine regulatory system reform and process optimization; new regulatory science tools and approaches that evaluate vaccine efficacy, safety, and manufacturing quality; and active post-marketing pharmacovigilance.

The NSFC is a major source of funding in China for both basic research and frontier exploration.