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Message from the director
The Institute for Global Health Policy Research, commonly referred to as the iGHP was established in October 2016 in the National Center for Global Health and Medicine.
The field of global health policy research is very broad. It requires a multidisciplinary approach, including medicine, health science, welfare, epidemiology, sociology, economics, medical anthropology, political science, diplomacy. Therefore, analysis and evaluation from a scientific perspective, backed up by practical experiences in the ground, are required to develop useful policy recommendations. To this end, iGHP is working closely with the overseas global health projects by the Bureau of International Health Cooperation. The iGHP is a unique research center where practitioners can conduct research, and researchers can gain experience in the field.
The reason why iGHP is making a special effort to develop human resources is that the number of human resources involved in global health projects and research in Japan is deficient compared to other countries. Take WHO, for example, the number of full-time Japanese staff members is only about 40 or so, which is less than a third of the appropriate number of staff for their contributions. The same is applied to other international organizations.
The iGHP works closely with Human Resources Strategy Center for Global Health, which provides information on human resources at international organizations, supports Japanese candidates in applying for international organizations, and facilities their career development.
The iGHP is a research center for "perches" on which birds, that travel to and from large areas of the world, can rest their wings in preparation for their next leap forward. The iGHP aims to become a major center for human resource development by allowing personnel who have gained valuable experience and conducted research at the iGHP and then spread their wings to other research institutions, such as international organizations and universities, and by further developing human resource in collaboration with the iGHP at the new center.
To this end, the iGHP has a system of specially-appointed and visiting researcher positions so that students can participate in research while they are in the doctoral program of universities. Postdoctoral fellows and researchers working part-time at universities and other institutions are also eligible to apply.
If you are interested in and passionate about global health, please contact the secretariat .
Hiroyasu Iso
Director,
Institute for Global Health Policy Research,
Bureau of International Health Cooperation,
National Center for Global Health and Medicine