Assessing Biomedical Research Capacities in Selected Countries of Latin America: Challenges, Opportunities, and Recommendations

Jorge A. Huete-Perez^1*Narayana Salvatierra²

• ¹Science, Technology and International Affairs, Georgetown University, Washington, United States
• ²Loyola University Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Persistent gaps in funding, infrastructure, and training underscore the need for targeted strategies to support biomedical research in Latin America. This study contributes to ongoing discussions on regional science policy and international cooperation by addressing knowledge gaps and offering evidence-based recommendations. The findings aim to guide policymakers, funding agencies, and academic institutions in designing interventions that strengthen biomedical research ecosystems. Additionally, the study highlights the importance of international programs in fostering collaboration and advancing regional scientific capacity.A multi-method approach was adopted to collect quantitative and qualitative data on biomedical research capacities in the selected countries. Figure 1 outlines the overall research design and serves as a visual guide to the sequential steps of the study, including the literature review, expert interviews, country selection, survey development and pilot testing; data collection through survey and case study; contextual analysis using socioeconomic, R&D, and publication indicators, and final data analysis and synthesis through both thematic and quantitative methods. [Figure 1. Flow Chart of the Key Components of the Research Design and Methods. This figure illustrates the sequential components of the research design and methods, including literature review, expert input, country selection, data collection, contextualization, and data analysis.]Country Selection and Literature Review. For our study, we selected five countries -Colombia, Peru, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Panamabased on three primary criteria. First, these countries represent a middle tier of research performance within Latin America. They are positioned below the leading nations such as Brazil, Mexico, Chile, and Argentina, yet they demonstrate significant potential for growth. Second, the selection ensures geographical diversity by including countries from both Central America (Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Panama) and Andean subregion (Colombia and Peru), thereby offering a representative cross-section of scientific and cultural contexts. Third, these countries were chosen because they provided sufficient data on scientific output, socioeconomic indicators, and institutional infrastructure, which enabled a robust and meaningful analysis.