At one point, seven teams across the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation were responsible for research and development investments related to the health of mothers, newborns, and children.
In 2018, those teams were aggregated into a single portfolio called the Maternal, Newborn, Child Health Discovery & Tools Portfolio.
Over time, the program has shifted focus toward addressing the underlying drivers of maternal and newborn mortality, while its sister team, the MNCH program strategy team, focuses on taking existing innovations and working with partners to tailor them to the contexts where they work.