This research initiative is supported through the Catalyst Fund: Strategic, the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment’s (MBIE) programme for fostering international support, and aims to support the development of research collaborations between New Zealand researchers and Chinese colleagues.

Through this RFP, the funding partners are seeking to fund high quality biomedical research that will support the development of collaborative research relationships that demonstrate long term health and economic benefits to New Zealand.

The HRC invites applications for funding of up to $405,000 (fully-costed, exclusive of GST) and duration of up to 3 years. It is anticipated that funding for up to two projects will be available for a April 2026 start date. There may be unavoidable delays to the funding announcement and the start date of the research project.

Eligibility criteria

For a proposal to be assessed under this Catalyst: Strategic funding round, it must meet the eligibility criteria set out below. Registrations that the HRC determines do not meet these criteria will be declined for funding on eligibility grounds.

• Applicants must submit a registration
• The registration must be made by a New Zealand-based research organisation or a New Zealand-based legal entity representing a New Zealand-based research organisation.
• The first named investigator must be employed by a New Zealand-based research organisation, or a New Zealand-based legal entity representing a New Zealand-based research organisation.
• The applicants must have identified suitable research collaborators from a leading China research organisation(s).
• There is a limit of one application per first named investigator. Failure to comply with this limit will result in the withdrawal of the application(s) (i.e. all applications submitted after the limit was reached).

For more information about our contract requirements, please read the HRC Rules document under 'Helpful links'.

Application process

If you’re applying for funding through this partnership, you’ll need to submit a registration via HRC Gateway. You’ll then need to complete a full application using the 2025 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance Application Form. You will also need to complete the 2025 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance Budget Form. Full applications are submitted via HRC Gateway.

Got a question?

If you have read through the documents below and the ‘How to apply for HRC funding’ section under ‘Helpful links’ and still have a question about the 2024 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance, please email info@hrc.govt.nz. 

Documents

Request for proposals

2025 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance RFP
29 Apr, 2025 3:25pm - 349KB

Guidelines

2025 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance Assessment Criteria
29 Apr, 2025 3:26pm - 71KB

2025 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance Guidelines
29 Apr, 2025 3:26pm - 1.4MB

Forms

2025 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance Application Form
29 Apr, 2025 3:25pm - 834KB

2025 NZ-China Biomedical Research Alliance Budget Form
29 Apr, 2025 3:26pm - 47KB