Prevention and management of chronic non-communicable diseases in children and young people (GACD)

The Horizon Europe grant opportunity focuses on the prevention and management of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in children and young people, particularly in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) and underserved populations in High-Income Countries (HICs). This forthcoming call, titled "Prevention and management of chronic non-communicable diseases in children and young people (GACD)," aims to support implementation research that explores how evidence-based interventions can be effectively adapted, implemented, and scaled in real-world settings.

The call is set to open on February 10, 2027, with a submission deadline of April 13, 2027. It offers a total budget of €11.8 million, expecting to fund approximately three projects with individual contributions ranging from €3 million to €4 million. The grants will be awarded under the Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) framework with a lump sum mechanism, simplifying financial management by providing fixed funding rather than reimbursable costs.

Eligible applicants include various entities such as research organizations, universities, public institutions, NGOs, and healthcare organizations from EU Member States, associated countries, and selected non-EU entities, including the USA under specific provisions. Collaboration within multidisciplinary consortia is encouraged, with equitable partnerships between institutions in HICs and LMICs emphasized. Proposals must engage stakeholders, including community representatives, policymakers, and young people.

The focus of the research should include evidence-based strategies for preventing, diagnosing, screening, and managing NCDs affecting children and young adults aged 1-24 years. Successful projects are expected to generate recommendations for policymakers and healthcare practitioners, improve access to health insights, and foster community engagement. A strong emphasis will be placed on factors such as health equity, social determinants of health, and sustainability beyond the project period.

The application process is unique in that it follows a single-stage submission model where full proposals must be submitted without preliminary phases. This competitive opportunity prioritizes projects that address real-world effectiveness of health interventions, utilizing a hybrid study design that incorporates both implementation and effectiveness outcomes. Ultimately, the call seeks to bridge the gap between research and practical application, aiming to improve the health and quality of life for vulnerable populations facing chronic health challenges.

This is a Horizon Europe (HORIZON) call, specifically under Cluster 1 Health (Single stage 2027/1) (HORIZON HLTH 2027 01). The call is for HORIZON RIA Research and Innovation Actions with a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON AG LS] type of Model Grant Agreement (MGA). It is a forthcoming call with a single stage deadline model. The planned opening date is 10 February 2027, and the deadline date is 13 April 2027 at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The call, titled "Prevention and management of chronic non communicable diseases in children and young people (GACD)", aims to support activities that enable or contribute to tackling diseases and reducing disease burden. The expected outcomes include: improved access to insights and evidence for researchers, healthcare practitioners, and providers in low and middle income countries (LMICs) and high income countries (HICs) serving disadvantaged populations, regarding equitable promotion of early prevention, risk reduction, and timely diagnosis of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in children and young people; access to evidence and recommendations for policymakers, public health managers, authorities, parents, children, and young adults to improve quality of life and extend healthy life expectancy; improved understanding for researchers, clinicians, policymakers, and public health managers on effectively adapting and scaling up interventions for prevention and management of chronic NCDs at various levels; and full engagement of communities, parents, children, young adults, local stakeholders, and authorities in implementing and taking up interventions that tackle NCDs.

The scope of the call involves implementation research, exploring evidence based strategies, programs, and policy interventions across prevention, diagnosis, screening, and management of chronic NCDs, focusing on individuals aged 1 24 years in LMICs and/or underserved populations in HICs. The call is aligned with the 12th GACD call, with the Commission being a member of the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases (GACD).

Specific areas of focus include policy evaluation to tackle determinants of chronic NCD conditions, prevention of NCDs using targeted implementation strategies, screening and diagnosis of NCDs (or risk factors) using digital tools, and cost effective and patient centered management of NCDs. Proposals should explore implementation strategies using a hybrid design study incorporating effectiveness and implementation research outcomes, and formative research may be important to support readiness for implementation.

The proposed implementation research should focus on one or more evidence based interventions (or complex interventions), providing existing evidence of the intervention’s effectiveness, cost effectiveness, sustainability, scalability and potential for long term health and other impacts. Applicants should provide rationale and explore the implementation of proposed interventions for a selected study population based in one or more LMICs, and/or underserved populations experiencing health disparities, including Indigenous populations, in HICs, considering the unique social, political, economic, and cultural contexts.

Proposals should address implementation research activities, including describing the implementation research methodology and statistical design, having a strategy for measuring implementation research outcomes and real world effectiveness outcomes and indicators, addressing issues of equitable implementation, engaging an expert and skilled research team, providing a stakeholder engagement strategy, and providing opportunities for NCD focused implementation research capacity building.

The study population may include children and/or young people in the general population, with or without existing NCDs. Interventions can be implemented at various levels, and applicants are encouraged to explore any chronic non communicable condition or risk factor. A life course approach is also encouraged.

Proposals should use an appropriate implementation research design and framework, before and after studies, and additional implementation science classifications of study designs, noting that applicants are not limited to any particular design.

Proposals are expected to generate evidence directly relevant to policymakers, communities, and practitioners, engaging key stakeholders and using co development and co design approaches. Sustainability of the strategy beyond the project's lifespan should be demonstrated.

Proposals should consider relevant determinants of health and discuss their potential impact on the effective implementation of interventions, justifying any focus on a particular population.

The call requires the effective contribution of social sciences and humanities (SSH) disciplines and the involvement of SSH experts and institutions.

Participation in networking and joint activities is strongly encouraged, and proposals are expected to include a budget for such activities.

Applicants should provide details of their clinical studies in the dedicated annex using the template provided in the submission system.

The admissibility conditions, proposal page limit and layout, eligible countries, other eligibility conditions, financial and operational capacity and exclusion, award criteria, scoring and thresholds, submission and evaluation processes, and indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement are described in the annexes of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.

Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme.

The application and evaluation form templates, guidance documents, model grant agreement, call specific instructions, information on clinical studies, detailed budget table, and additional documents are available in the Submission System and the Funding & Tenders Portal.

The budget overview for the call in 2027 includes multiple topics: HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 CARE 02 with a budget of 38,000,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 8,000,000 to 10,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 4 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 DISEASE 05 with a budget of 44,200,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 9,000,000 to 11,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 5 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 DISEASE 06 with a budget of 37,300,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 9,000,000 to 10,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 4 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 DISEASE 07 with a budget of 37,300,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 9,000,000 to 10,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 4 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 DISEASE 08 with a budget of 44,200,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 8,000,000 to 10,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 5 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 DISEASE 10 with a budget of 11,800,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 3,000,000 to 4,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 3 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 ENVHLTH 02 with a budget of 45,000,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 10,000,000 to 11,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 4 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 ENVHLTH MISSCLIMA 03 with a budget of 20,000,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 4,000,000 to 5,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 4 grants; HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 IND 01 with a budget of 24,500,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 6,000,000 to 8,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 4 grants; and HORIZON HLTH 2027 01 STAYHLTH 01 with a budget of 39,300,000 EUR and contributions ranging from 6,000,000 to 8,000,000 EUR, with an indicative number of 5 grants.

This Horizon Europe call focuses on funding research and innovation actions to address the prevention and management of chronic non communicable diseases (NCDs) in children and young people. It emphasizes implementation research in low and middle income countries (LMICs) and underserved populations in high income countries (HICs). The goal is to generate evidence and insights that can be used by researchers, healthcare providers, policymakers, and communities to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and management of NCDs in young people, ultimately enhancing their quality of life and healthy life expectancy. The call encourages projects that involve multidisciplinary teams, stakeholder engagement, and capacity building, and that consider the social, economic, and cultural contexts in which interventions are implemented. The funding mechanism is based on lump sum grants, and successful projects are expected to participate in networking and joint activities to maximize their impact.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the context, they likely include researchers, healthcare practitioners and providers, policymakers, public health managers and authorities, local stakeholders, community groups, educators, and other relevant institutions or organizations. The call encourages equitable partnerships between High Income Countries (HICs) and Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs), as well as between non-Indigenous and Indigenous members. Therefore, universities, research institutions, NGOs, governmental bodies, and other relevant entities from these regions are likely eligible. The inclusion of early career researchers is also emphasized. Legal entities established in the United States of America are also eligible to receive Union funding.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Research and Innovation Action (HORIZON-RIA) with a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] mechanism. There is also a HORIZON Pre-commercial Procurement (HORIZON-PCP) action mentioned in the budget overview.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity encourages collaboration and partnerships, particularly between entities from HICs and LMICs, as well as between non-Indigenous and Indigenous groups. While not explicitly stated as a requirement, the emphasis on multidisciplinary approaches, stakeholder engagement, and equitable partnerships suggests that a consortium of multiple applicants is highly preferred, if not implicitly required, to ensure a comprehensive and impactful project.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes both Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) and High-Income Countries (HICs). However, within HICs, the focus is on serving disadvantaged populations, including Indigenous populations. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. Legal entities established in the United States of America are also eligible to receive Union funding.

Target Sector: The primary target sector is health, specifically focusing on the prevention and management of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in children and young people. This encompasses a wide range of conditions, including mental health disorders, autoimmune conditions, musculoskeletal conditions, neurological disorders, and sleep disorders, as well as related risk factors. The program also emphasizes the importance of addressing social, economic, political, structural, and commercial determinants of health. The effective contribution of social sciences and humanities (SSH) disciplines is also required.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity explicitly mentions Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) and High-Income Countries (HICs). The United States of America is also mentioned as eligible for Union funding.

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on implementation research. This means the opportunity targets projects that have already identified evidence-based interventions and are now focused on exploring strategies for their effective and equitable implementation, adaptation, and scaling up in real-world settings. Standalone feasibility projects, epidemiological cohorts, etiological work, mechanistic, or epidemiological research, clinical trials, validation studies, or intervention efficacy studies for a new or established pharmacological agent or behavioural intervention are explicitly stated as out of scope.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call. The contributions range from €3,000,000 to €11,000,000. For example, HORIZON-HLTH-2027-01-DISEASE-10 has contributions ranging from €3,000,000 to €4,000,000, while HORIZON-HLTH-2027-01-ENVHLTH-02 has contributions ranging from €10,000,000 to €11,000,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly stated, but the indicative number of grants for each topic provides some insight. For instance, topics like HORIZON-HLTH-2027-01-DISEASE-05 and HORIZON-HLTH-2027-01-DISEASE-08 indicate 5 grants, while HORIZON-HLTH-2027-01-DISEASE-10 indicates 3 grants.

Co-funding Requirement: The need for co-funding is not explicitly mentioned. However, demonstrating a stakeholder engagement strategy with evidence of support/engagement from key stakeholders for delivering the intervention and a pathway to sustain the proposed intervention (if proven effective) after the funding from the GACD grant ends is required, which may imply some level of co-funding or in-kind contributions.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call focuses on funding implementation research to tackle chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in children and young people (1-24 years old). The call is particularly interested in projects that address the prevention, diagnosis, screening, and management of NCDs in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) and/or underserved populations, including Indigenous populations, in High-Income Countries (HICs). The European Commission, as a member of the Global Alliance for Chronic Diseases (GACD), is launching this call in coordination with other international funding agencies.

The goal is to generate evidence and recommendations for national programs and policies that improve the quality of life and extend healthy life expectancy for children and young people. Projects should focus on implementing evidence-based interventions, adapting them to local contexts, and scaling them up effectively. A strong emphasis is placed on engaging local communities, policymakers, and healthcare providers in the research process, as well as building research capacity in LMICs and disadvantaged communities. The call encourages multidisciplinary approaches, equitable partnerships, and the inclusion of social sciences and humanities expertise. Eligible applicants include researchers, healthcare practitioners, policymakers, and other relevant organizations from both LMICs and HICs, with a particular focus on projects that involve clinical studies and demonstrate a clear pathway to sustainability beyond the grant period. The funding is provided as a lump sum grant, and the application process is a single-stage submission.