Research Programs
Applied and implementation research on clinical development, health systems and access in established and emerging markets.
Learn moreThink · GLS Institute
The GLS Institute generates the knowledge that informs better decisions, through research, publications, benchmark reports, policy analysis and implementation science. Its work is published through GLS Insights and shapes how sponsors, governments and institutions approach clinical development.
What the Institute Does
The Institute is the Think pillar of the GLS enterprise. It creates knowledge; the Academy develops people; the Network connects the ecosystem; Solutions deliver the work.

Applied and implementation research on clinical development, health systems and access in established and emerging markets.
Learn moreScientific leadership, advisory boards and expert guidance informing programs and policy.
Learn moreEvidence-based analysis, benchmark reports and sponsor guidance published through GLS Insights.
Learn moreEmerging methods, digital health, AI and new operational models for clinical research.
Learn moreFeatured Publications
Why Africa Matters: research ecosystems, scientific opportunity and the future geography of healthcare.
Read and downloadContinuing the three-part series on capability, investment and the path to leadership in global health.
Read and downloadBuilding inspection-ready clinical research organizations.
Read and downloadThe GLS Research Ecosystem Framework
A thriving clinical research ecosystem is not defined by a single advantage, but by the strength and alignment of multiple interconnected elements.
Efficient, transparent and harmonized regulatory pathways that enable research while protecting participants.
Investigators, institutions and scientific leadership capable of delivering rigorous research.
Reliable sites, laboratories, logistics and clinical operations systems that deliver quality at scale.
Digital tools, data readiness and connectivity that accelerate trials and improve outcomes.
A skilled, diverse and empowered workforce driving innovation and clinical excellence.
Trusting relationships with communities to ensure participation, relevance and shared benefit.
Responsible data management and protection of intellectual property to build trust and enable innovation.
Financial, environmental and social sustainability ensuring long-term impact for future generations.
Infrastructure can be built. Systems can be implemented. But ecosystems are earned, through trust, consistency and shared value.
GLS InstituteGLS Insights
Insights is where the GLS Institute, the Think pillar of the enterprise, publishes its research, analysis and intelligence.

Strategic commentary on the forces reshaping clinical development.
Jump toPerformance benchmarks across established and emerging markets.
Jump toHow data, AI and digital tools are changing trial delivery.
Jump toRegulatory, operational and market intelligence by country.
Jump toExecutive Perspectives
Considered analysis from GLS leadership and the Institute on the structural forces shaping clinical development, representation and access, regulatory convergence, emerging-market capability and the economics of trial delivery.
Why funders increasingly expect trials to reflect the populations they aim to protect.
AVAREF, the African Medicines Agency and what harmonization means for multi-country trials.
Why fewer handoffs beat more vendors in complex programs.
Benchmark Reports
Benchmark analysis of clinical development performance, start-up timelines, activation, recruitment, quality and cost across established and emerging markets. Reports are published by the GLS Institute and are coming soon.
AI and Digital Health
Digital tools, data readiness and AI are reshaping how trials are designed, monitored and analyzed. The Institute examines what actually works, and what representative data means for models trained on narrow populations.
Country Insights
Country-level intelligence on regulatory pathways, ethics review, import and export, site landscape and operational realities, the practical detail sponsors need before committing to a market.
Collaborate on research, request a briefing or be notified when publications are released.