The recommendation development process is structured around 3 high-level steps. This page provides high-level descriptions of each step and some of the actions under way to improve the recommendation development process. This is a work in progress.

1. Better anticipate: activities that build up to and trigger the recommendation development process
2. Develop recommendations: activities undertaken to develop recommendations
3. Optimize uptake: dissemination of recommendations and monitoring of their use

Diagram of GMP's recommendation pathway for new products

The revised recommendation development process begins with activities to provide a framework to prioritize GMP's work:

• defining unmet and partially met public health needs related to malaria;
• recognizing or endorsing existing preferred product characteristics (PPCs), or developing them if needed, to stimulate innovation, guide product development and reduce uncertainties about the characteristics of desirable products;
• reviewing the pipeline of new products and strategies and anticipating when evidence is available to develop new or updated recommendations;
• providing scientific advice jointly with the WHO Prequalification (PQ) team to product developers;
• assessing, via the Vector Control Advisory Group (VCAG), the public health value of new vector control interventions and providing guidance on developing the evidence base required to inform such assessments. Once an intervention has demonstrated public health value, WHO will move forward with the standard recommendation development processes.

The recommendation development process for new tools and strategies can be triggered by several actions:

1. submission of a product dossier to a stringent regulatory authority;
2. published evidence available to evaluate a new product or strategy identified through horizon scanning or open nomination;
3. information provided from a review by the Vector Control Advisory Committee (VCAG); or
4. feedback from stakeholders.

GMP is working together with the Prequalification (PQ) team to improve the recommendation development process and links with the prequalification processes. This includes:

• agreeing on how communication and coordination between the 2 teams can be improved;
• developing a single critical path for the parallel development of recommendations and prequalification assessments with the goal of issuing recommendations and the related prequalification listing(s) simultaneously;
• potentially revising the eligibility criteria for the submission of prequalification applications to facilitate parallel recommendation development and prequalification assessments to reduce the time to deployment for new tools.

Stakeholders are able to track through an overview table how recommendations progress through the process and can provide feedback at an stage at: gmpfeedback@who.int

• improved communication linking the recommendation and prequalification listed products;
• improved dissemination of malaria guidelines at regional and country level and monitoring uptake;
• feedback loops to ensure utility for end users;
• simplified taxonomy of guidance documents, making it easier for users to find and use the documents they need.

Input and feedback on our work is very important to us, especially from end-users of malaria policy guidance during this transition period. Please email us at gmpfeedback@who.int for more information or to tell us what you think.