The University of Zimbabwe-University of California San Francisco Collaborative Research Program (UZ-UCSF) was established in 1994 to implement high quality science addressing HIV prevention and therapy; its aim is to control Zimbabwe’s HIV/AIDS epidemic and contribute to global policy as a center of excellence at the University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences (UZCHS) in collaboration with UCSF and its partner institutions.

Over the last 20 years, the program has developed a governance structure built on principles of inclusiveness and collaboration of scientific, community, and administrative functions, coupled with efficiency and transparency in resource allocation. A wide range of research collaborations between the institutions have been developed, whereby faculty and staff work closely together in the development and execution of new innovative research. We are pushing our already effective governance structures to establish more open mechanisms for generating new research initiatives in both public and private sectors.