PDPs as social technology innovators in global health: operating above and below the radar

Chataway, Jo; Hanlin, Rebecca; Muraguri, Lois and Wamae, Watu (2009). PDPs as social technology innovators in global health: operating above and below the radar. In: Penea, Oana ed. Innovating for the Health of All. Global Forum Update on Research for Health (6). Geneva: Global Forum for Health Research, pp. 123–126.

URL: http://www.globalforumhealth.org/Media-Publication...

Abstract

PDP success rests on an ability to create new science and technology but it also depends on the creation of new organisational structures and cultures which can successfully develop appropriate technology and products and get them to those who need them. One of the main reasons PDPs are supported and funded is that they constitute a 'social technology' innovation. As such they work both with 'above the radar' established and formal mechanisms for developing new products and with 'below the radar' networks, organisations and physical technologies in developing countries so that products are appropriate, understood and accepted and can be made accessible to those who need them. We argue that thinking about PDPs in this light provides a useful framework for evaluation.