From Local Action to Global Impact Advancing Research Capacity Through Collaboration June 2025

Between the 9th and 14th of June 2025, GMHCP hosted a landmark Research Capacity & Capability Building Programme in Manchester. This transformative week brought together researchers, clinicians, students, and global collaborators from both the UK and Pakistan. Designed to strengthen partnerships and enhance local leadership, the week served as a powerful example of what can be achieved when knowledge, purpose, and community come together.

Highlight: Global Health Research in Pakistan – 10th June 2025

Held at the Hyatt Regency Manchester, our flagship event Global Health Research in Pakistan: From Local Action to Global Impact convened leading voices in international mental health and public health research. The event spotlighted critical collaborations between researchers in Pakistan and the UK and addressed shared challenges in delivering impactful, culturally relevant healthcare interventions.

The day featured a robust lineup of speakers and presenters, including:

• Dr Muhammad Ilyas Gondal – Former Director General Health Services Punjab, Pakistan
• Professor Nusrat Husain – Professor of Psychiatry; Director Research Global Mental Health, University of Manchester
• Dr Nasim Chaudhry – CEO, Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning
• Dr Ume Laila – Professor of Psychology, Dean of School of Arts and Social Sciences, Gujranwala Institute of Future Technologies, GIFT university
• Mr Tariq Wazir – Consul General of Pakistan, Manchester
• Dr Nicola Commander – NIHR Assistant Director of Global Health Research
• Professor Zainab Zadeh – Professorial Research Scientist and Chief Operating Officer (Research), Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning
• Prof Rod Taylor – Professor of Population Health Research, University of Glasgow
• Prof Mowadat Rana – Head of Division of Neuropsychiatry, Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning
• Ms Farah Lunat – Research Operations Manager, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust
• Professor Imran Chaudhry – Chairman, Department of Psychiatry, Ziauddin Hospital, Karachi
• Professor Maria Panagioti – Professor of Mental Health, University of Manchester
• Professor Saeed Farooq – Global Research Professor, National Institute of Health and Care Research, UK; Professor of Psychiatry and Public Mental Health, Keele University
• Dr Dung Jidong – Lead, Global Mental Health Research Theme, Division of Psychology & Mental Health; Director, ClinPsyD EDI, University of Manchester
• Dr Rakhshi Memon – CEO, Manchester Global Foundation
• Dr Ahmed Waqas – Clinical Research Fellow, Primary Care & Mental Health, University of Liverpool
• Dr. Zahoor Ahmed – Ambassador of Pakistan to Spain
• Dr. Haiyan Zheng – Reader in Statistics, University of Bath

Throughout the day, attendees participated in panel discussions, presentations, and networking opportunities that highlighted:

• The development of culturally adapted mental health interventions
• Digital innovations in recruitment and data collection
• Strategies for long-term sustainability and ethical research in LMICs
• Research studies funded by the NIHR and delivered with deep community involvement

The full event agenda and images is included at the end of this post.

Research Capacity & Capability Building Workshops (9th–14th June 2025)

Across six days, attendees participated in interactive workshops designed to strengthen essential skills in mental health research, particularly across low-resource settings. These sessions catered to early career researchers, clinicians, students, and academics alike, building their confidence in both practical and theoretical research delivery.

The workshops covered a range of themes, led by an outstanding group of facilitators:

9th June 2025
Digital AI for Recruitment in Research Trials
Facilitator: Dr. Naeem Muhammad
Exploring the power of artificial intelligence to aid participant recruitment, including a session on using ChatGPT to support qualitative data analysis.

10th June 2025
Global Health Research in Pakistan event
[Details above]

11th June 2025
“Count Me In” & Cognitive Remediation

Morning Session Facilitators: Jahanara Miah and Michelle Harvey

Afternoon Session: Dr. James Gilleen on Cognitive Remediation
• Amna Noreen led an introductory talk on cognitive remediation approaches.

12th & 13th June 2025
Grant Writing Retreat

Facilitators:
• Professor Nusrat Husain
• Professor Imran Chaudhry (12th June)
• Professor Karina Lovell (13th June)

These sessions gave participants a structured, mentored opportunity to begin drafting their own research proposals and thoroughly go through and review current and upcoming grants. Many attendees left with tangible progress on future applications.

14th June 2025
Research Delivery Network Meeting
Hosted at Manchester Global Foundation (MGF), this final session created space for reflection, next steps, and mapping future collaborative priorities.

Full daily agendas for each session are available at the end of this blog post.

Capturing the Week: Images & Visual Moments

We’re thrilled to share a visual snapshot of the week through our image gallery, which you can find below. These images capture the engagement, diversity, and collaboration that were the heart of this programme.

Interested in contributing a blog post, quote, or reflection from your experience? Please get in touch — we’d love to feature your voice.

What We Learned

• Invest in local expertise: Real impact comes from empowering communities and researchers on the ground.
• Partnership is power: Cross-border collaboration leads to more ethical, context-sensitive and scalable research.
• Capacity is continuity: Long-term investment in skills, training, and relationships will sustain future projects.

Gratitude & Acknowledgements

This programme would not have been possible without the hard work and contributions of our incredible speakers, facilitators, and participants. We also thank our partners at the University of Manchester, Manchester Global Foundation, and the NIHR for their continued support.

Explore the Agendas

• [Download the 10th June Global Health Research in Pakistan Agenda (PDF)]
• [Download the Research Capacity & Capability Building Week Agenda (PDF)]