The WHO Health Technology Access Programme (HTAP), the WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia and the WHO Country Office for India met with the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) at the Institute's campus in Trivandrum, Kerala, India, on 12—13 February 2025 following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the two organizations in January 2025.
The visit and technical discussions mark an important milestone in facilitating the transfer of selected technologies from institutions with a public health mandate to HTAP and subsequently to suitable manufacturers in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
HTAP's mission is to bridge the health technology access gap by providing an evidence-driven mechanism for selecting, securing and facilitating the geo-diversified transfer of existing technologies. In the long run, it also seeks to build end-to-end product development capacity in LMICs through global and regional health technology consortia.
Discussions focused on potential technology candidates and key areas for potential collaboration, including education and training, technology transfer and the business incubation unit designed to allow small startups the opportunity to develop projects, informed by interactions with SCTIMST scientists, if requested.
SCTIMST is a unique publicly funded institution that carries research and development of prioritized medical technologies all the way to proof of concept while also providing the necessary support for technology transfer. Fields of research discussed in detail during the visit include biomaterials, biomedical engineering, in vitro diagnostics, other medical devices and assistive technologies, which jointly contribute to a growing list of technologies that have now been commercialized in India and beyond.
The MOU with SCTIMST will support HTAP's vision of establishing a global network of public institutions that could provide technologies under transparent, non-exclusive licenses, addressing critical access gaps in underserved regions. This effort is guided by a robust prioritization process that considers both need and the likelihood of success.
A two-year workplan is currently being developed to translate the objectives of the MoU into concrete, actionable activities.
HTAP, which builds on lessons learned from the COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP), remains focused on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. At the same time, it promotes access to health products that address existing public health priorities by actively targeting platform technologies and other essential health products relevant both during and beyond health emergencies.
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From left to right: Dr Anoop Kumar, Scientist, molecular medicine, SCTIMST, Dr Madhur Gupta, Technical officer, WHO Country Office for India, Mr Einstein Kesi, Medical device expert, WHO HTAP, Dr Dragana Milic, Diagnostics and medical device expert, WHO HTAP, Mr Michael Ward, Senior technical specialist, WHO HTAP, Mr Jofy Paul, Vice president, R&D-Reagent, Agappe.
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From left to right: Mr Einstein Kesi, Medical device expert, WHO HTAP, Dr Roy Joseph, Scientist, Polymeric medical devices, SCTIMST, Dr Sanjay Behari, Director, SCTIMST, Dr Anoop Kumar, Scientist, molecular medicine, SCTIMST, Mr Michael Ward, Senior technical specialist, WHO HTAP, Dr Madhur Gupta, Technical officer, WHO Country Office for India, Dr Jayasree RS, Scientist, biophotonics and imaging, SCTIMST, Mr Nagesh DS, Scientist, extracorporeal devices, SCTIMST, Dr Manikandan S, Deputy director, SCTIMST.
