The South-South Initiative for Tropical Diseases Research (SSI-TDR) was first introduced on behalf of the Committee of Pathogenesis and Applied Genomics (PAG) of TDR in March 2001 in Harare, Zimbabwe, to harness the diverse research and training capability in disease endemic countries (DECs). The overall goal of the SSI-TDR is to promote interaction and research collaboration between investigators in Disease Endemic Countries (DECs) across Africa, Latin America and Asia, in the application of scientific, technological and methodological advances to Research for Health, with an emphasis on infectious diseases of poverty.

To achieve the above goals, SSI-TDR will concentrate on

• fostering interactions among research groups within and between disease endemic regions in Asia, Africa, and Latin America to form global networks
• fostering scientific leadership development in Southern countries
• empowering Southern research groups to advance research, training and capacity building in cutting-edge areas, technologies and methods
• extending its expertise and remitting from innovation to translation, implementation and policy encompassing the full spectrum of research for health in infectious diseases of poverty
• contributing to the identification of areas of common interest in research for health in different regions
• enhancing the development of common protocols, transfer of essential technology and the sharing of reagents and information
• promoting to DEC governments and international agencies the value of South- South partnership in policy making and priority setting