The John E. Fogarty International Center for Advanced Studies in the Health Sciences (FIC) was established in 1968. At this time, NIH’s Office of International Research was abolished and several of its functions transferred to FIC, including service as the focal point for international affairs at NIH. Many aspects of this role are housed in the Division of International Relations (DIR) to support the Director of FIC in their capacity as NIH Associate Director for International Research.
Since its creation as the international locus at NIH, many of the Institutes and Centers (IC) of NIH have established global offices to support their own IC specific international programs.
The Division of International Relations is the global office for FIC but also serves NIH at the organizational and operational level. In addition to FIC’s scientific mission, which is focused on research and capacity building in low-and middle-income countries, DIR’s activities are cross-cutting, ranging from international policy relevant to NIH international engagements, managing several NIH-wide international programs that are co-funded by organizations outside the U.S., serving as a liaison to NIH’s Office of the Director on international matters, and often representing NIH as an Operating Division of the Department of Health and Human Services. DIR covers all global regions and economies through a team of experienced
Regional Program Directors. DIR is available to consult with NIH Institutes, Centers and Offices (ICOs) on all topics of international concern.
Division Responsiblities
Beyond its support of FIC, DIR engages when inquiries or activities pertain to NIH as an organization, involve several ICOs or upon request by individual ICOs or the NIH OD:
- Serving as the point of contact for international entities who wish to engage with NIH.
- Identifying or highlighting for NIH opportunities for collaboration with foreign science funding agencies, the U.S. Department of State, U.S. technical agencies and international organizations.
- Hosting of foreign delegations visiting NIH and facilitating engagements by foreign delegations with relevant NIH ICO.
- Developing trans-NIH, multi-ICO international arrangements, and consultation (upon request) on international arrangements developed by individual ICO at NIH.
- Consulting and assisting in visa support letters for international invitees to ICO hosted conferences and for ICO funded organizations when they bring trainees to their organization.
- Summarizing of NIH’s international funding portfolio - U.S. awards that include international collaborations, as well as funding that is directly to foreign organizations using public facing resources.
- Interpretation of international topics and regulations that may impact NIH’s foreign funding.
- Representation of NIH as an agency in relevant discussion with other U.S. Government agencies.
- Principal liaison to the Department of Health and Human Service’s Office of Global Affairs and the Department of State.
- Management of records submitted to the NIH Electronic Research Administration (eRA) Foreign Awards and Components Tracking System (FACTS) on behalf of NIH.
- Management of several bilaterally funded NIH wide international intramural training programs, extramural bilateral funding programs and other international training programs.
- Consultation and advisement to the NIH ICOs on navigating international initiatives and programs.
DIR's roles are defined in NIH Manual Chapter 1895,
Coordination of International Activities
Updated June 6, 2023