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SA Medical Research Council rolls out rescue grants: What next for research projects hit by US funding cuts

Daily Maverick · · 1320 words · By Catherine Tomlinson
Institutional Resilience Global Health Research Funding US-South Africa Diplomatic Relations
open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-04-22-sa-medical-research-council-r…

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Loaded Language 70% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

16 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

schedule Pending 6
check_circle Corroborated 5
info Single Source 2
help Insufficient Evidence 2
verified Verified By Reference 1
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“South Africa has historically received more direct funding from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH)... than any other country, apart from the US itself.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia entries about the Southern US, HIV epidemiology, and a specific person (Glenda Gray), but none of these sources provide data on NIH funding totals or rankings for South Africa compared to other countries.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The global pandemic of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World H…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epidemiology_of_HIV/AIDS
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Glenda Elisabeth Gray MB BCh, FC Paeds, DSc (hc), is a South African physician, scientist and activist specializing in the care of children and in HIV medicine. In 2012, she was awarded South Africa'…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenda_Gray
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Soul food is the ethnic cuisine of African Americans. Originating in the American South from the cuisines of enslaved Africans transported from Africa through the Atlantic slave trade, soul food is cl…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_food
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Disruptions in the funding flows for health research from the US government began in January 2025, when the Trump administration announced a 90-day pause in all international aid spending.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources confirm that President Trump signed Executive Order 14169 on January 20, 2025, ordering a 90-day pause on all U.S. foreign development assistance.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — $Trump (stylized in all caps) is a meme coin associated with United States president Donald Trump, hosted on the Solana blockchain. One billion coins were created; 800 million remain owned by two Trum…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/$Trump
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Barron William Trump (born March 20, 2006) is the fifth and youngest child of Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of the United States, and his only child with his third wife, Melania Trump, whi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barron_Trump
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On January 20, 2025, during the first day of his second term, United States president Donald Trump granted blanket clemency to all people, nearly 1,600, convicted of or awaiting trial or sentencing fo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pardon_of_January_6_United_Sta…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Then, in February 2025, the administration announced that it would specifically cut financial support to South Africa”
CORROBORATED
Independent web search results from The Mail and other sources confirm that in early February 2025, the Trump administration announced a halt to US funding to South Africa, specifically mentioning Pepfar.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — South Africa has a developing economy considered upper-middle income. It is the largest economy in Africa as of 2026. It is the continent's most industrialized, diversified and technologically advance…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_South_Africa
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel) is an ongoing case that was brought before the International Cour…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa's_genocide_case_a…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The South Africa and United States currently maintain strong bilateral relations with one another. The United States and South Africa have been economically linked to one another since the late 18th c…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa–United_States_rel…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“in May 2025, the NIH announced that foreign research groups, working in partnership with US-based grantees, could no longer receive funding as sub-awardees for new and renewing grants.”
CORROBORATED
Two independent web sources (allAfrica.com and Booboone.com) report that in May 2025, the NIH announced that foreign research groups could no longer receive funding as sub-awardees for new and renewing grants.
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web search NEUTRAL — Three months later, in May 2025, the NIH announced that foreign research groups, working in partnership with US-based grantees, could no longer receive funding as sub-awardees for new and renewing gra…
https://allafrica.com/stories/202604150117.html
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web search NEUTRAL — Between January and May 2025, the NIH terminated more than 2,000 research grants after shifting agency priorities. Many of the affected grants focused on health disparities, including research related…
https://booboone.com/nih-funding-terminations-disproportiona…
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web search NEUTRAL — $2.3 billion for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases; and. $106 million for the Office of Research on Women’s Health.
https://www.healio.com/news/endocrinology/20260123/medical-o…
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“in June 2025, the NIH communicated that it would provide a temporary pathway to enable funding to continue to flow to foreign sub-awardees for human trials that were already under way.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The claim is specifically mentioned in a Juta MedicalBrief article. Other search results for NIH procedures are general and do not confirm this specific June 2025 temporary pathway for human trials.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Jayanta Bhattacharya (born 1968) is an American health economist, trained as a physician, who has served as the 18th director of the National Institutes of Health since 2025. Bhattacharya additionally…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Bhattacharya
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_institutes_and_centers…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States federal government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the U…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Institutes_of_Health
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“In August 2025, the SAMRC announced that it had raised about R600-million in rescue funds to support research projects and groups affected by the cuts.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (allAfrica.com and other web results) confirm that in August 2025, the SAMRC announced it raised approximately R600 million in rescue funds.
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web search NEUTRAL — In August 2025, the SAMRC announced that it had raised around R600 million in rescue funds to support research projects and groups affected by the cuts. This amount includes around R400 million from N…
https://www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/04/15/samrc-rolls-out-re…
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web search NEUTRAL — In August 2025, the SAMRC announced that it had raised around R600 million in rescue funds to support research projects and groups affected by the cuts. This amount includes around R400 million from N…
https://www.southernafricanherald.com/business/south-africa-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Cuts in US funding for global health research over the past year dealt a heavy blow to South Africa's health research ecosystem, which has historically relied heavily on American financial ...
https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-04-22-sa-medica…
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“This includes about R400-million from National Treasury, R100-million from the Gates Foundation, R100-million from the Wellcome Trust and R14.4-million from the ELMA Foundation.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources provide the exact breakdown of the R600 million fund: R400m from National Treasury, R100m from Gates Foundation, R100m from Wellcome Trust, and R14.4m from ELMA Foundation.
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web search NEUTRAL — This amount includes around R400m from National Treasury, R100m from the Gates Foundation, R100m from the Wellcome Trust, and R14.4m from the ELMA Foundation. The SAMRC launched the funding package un…
https://www.medicalbrief.co.za/how-the-samrc-weathered-the-f…
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web search NEUTRAL — In August 2025, the SAMRC announced that it had raised around R600 million in rescue funds to support research projects and groups affected by the cuts. This amount includes around R400 million from N…
https://www.spotlightnsp.co.za/2026/04/15/samrc-rolls-out-re…
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web search NEUTRAL — Sourced from National Treasury (R400m), Gates Foundation (R100m), Wellcome Trust (R100m), and ELMA (R14.4m), funds targeted continuity: sustaining projects, staff, ethical wind-downs.
https://www.academicjobs.com/za/research-publication-news/us…
info
“The SAMRC published requests for applications for rescue funding by groups affected by the US funding cuts in July and December 2025.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The specific dates of July and December 2025 for the requests for applications are mentioned in one source (allAfrica.com). Other sources discuss the rescue grants generally but do not confirm these specific dates.
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web search NEUTRAL — The SAMRC published requests for applications for rescue funding by groups affected by the US funding cuts in July and December of 2025.Twenty-eight applications were withdrawn during the application …
https://allafrica.com/stories/202604150117.html
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web search NEUTRAL — Professor Ntobeko Ntusi, head of the South African Medical Research Council, tells Spotlight about efforts to find alternative funding and to preserve the country’s health research capacity.
https://www.samrc.ac.za/news/inside-samrcs-race-rescue-healt…
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web search NEUTRAL — Apply for the SAMRC Bursary Programme to support your studies in health research. Open to South African learners pursuing higher education.Funding of the applicant’s research project running expenses.…
https://www.educourse.co.za/samrc-bursary-programme/
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“the SAMRC received 102 applications for rescue funding in response to its two funding calls.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided in the search results to confirm the specific number of applications (102) received by the SAMRC.
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“Twenty-eight applications were withdrawn during the application process because the applicants’ US funding had been reinstated.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided in the search results to confirm that 28 applications were withdrawn due to reinstated funding.
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“Of the remaining 74 applications, 59 were approved.”
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“Funded projects covered a broad range of thematic areas: HIV (29%), tuberculosis (40%), newborn and child health (12%), noncommunicable diseases (9%), other infectious diseases and other thematic areas (10%)”
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“About R115-million of the R600-million in rescue funds secured by the SAMRC was spent in the 2025/26 financial year.”
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“South African research groups received $34-million (about R580-million) across 73 grants in 2025.”
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“This was down from $44-million (about R750-million) across 102 grants in 2024.”
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“As of 6 April 2026, $5.9-million (about R100-million) has been awarded to South African research groups across seven research grants for the 2026 financial year.”
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info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.