Burundi

Praziquantel Donation Program

Merck KGaA’s Praziquantel Donation Program, in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), aims to fight schistosomiasis in Africa. Schistosomiasis is a parasitic worm disease that is the second most prevalent and devastating parasitic disease in tropical countries after malaria. Infection occurs when human skin comes into contact with fresh water contaminated by snails carrying the schistosome parasites, which migrate through the body and spread the infectious disease. It represents the 2nd most severe burden for African children after malaria, and is considered as one of the most neglected tropical diseases. The consequences of an infection are particularly serious for children, as schistosomiasis stunts growth and cognitive development and also lead to anemia. WHO reports more than 200 million infected people in Americas, Africa, the Middle East, Southeast and the Western Pacific.

ViiV Healthcare Access to ARVs

In the Least Developed Countries and sub-Saharan Africa GlaxoSmithKline has offered its HIV/AIDS medicines at not-for-profit (nfp) prices since 2001. ViiV Healthcare will maintain this commitment, and will include the additional products in its portfolio. All of ViiV Healthcare's ARVs are now available at not-for-profit prices to public sector customers and not-for-profit organizations in all Least Developed Countries and all of sub-Saharan Africa - 64 countries in total.

Sanofi-aventis: Diabetes Prevention

In 2006, sanofi-aventis launched pilot programs to help improve diabetes disease management in developing countries, in conjunction with the NGO Handicap International, Sante Diabete Mali and other local NGOs in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Several projects were set up in 2007 in Burundi, India, Kenya, Madagascar, Nicaragua, Philippines and Thailand. The program aims to help local health care systems to manage the disease better, prevent the onset of complications and so avoid the subsequent need for surgical interventions such as amputation.

PMTCT: Abbott Rapid HIV Test Donation Program

Each year, approximately 800,000 babies around the world become infected with HIV during their mothers´ pregnancy, during birth or through breastfeeding.

Pfizer Global Health Fellows

The Pfizer Global Health Fellows program utilizes the professional expertise of Pfizer employees through specialized volunteer assignments with nonprofit organizations to improve health care services for underserved communities around the world. Since 2003, more than 230 employees with a range of technical skills have served in 39 nations for 3-6 month assignments investing nearly 200,000 hours of skills-based service to help increase the capacity of nonprofits organizations providing health care to the underserved (in the reporting period, 54 Global Health Fellows were deployed).

Pfizer Diflucan Partnership

Pfizer created the Diflucan Partnership in 2000 to provide treatment for two AIDS-related fungal infections in developing countries. Since the program's inception, Pfizer has over provided USD 1.1 billion of products and its program partners distribute millions of Diflucan (fluconazole) treatments free of charge to governments and NGOs in 63 developing countries in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and Latin America. Pfizer has also provided training and education materials to 20,000 healthcare professionals.

Novo Nordisk: Differential Pricing on Insulin

Among the targets for UN Millennium Development Goal 8 is a call for partnerships with pharmaceutical companies to provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries. Since 2001, Novo Nordisk has offered human insulin to the public health systems in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) at prices which do not to exceed 20% of the average price in Europe, Japan and North America. In 2009, Novo Nordisk offered this pricing scheme to all 49 LDCs, of which 36 used it to buy insulin at or below this price, compared to 32 in 2008.

Merck Mectizan Donation Program

Onchocerciasis, or river blindness, is a leading cause of infectious blindness in the developing world. The Merck Mectizan Donation Program (MDP) was launched in 1987, when Merck & Co., Inc. announced that it would donate Mectizan (ivermectin), for the treatment of onchocerciasis to all who needed it for as long as needed.

Merck & Co., Inc. HIV/AIDS Programs - Africa

In 2009, with support from The Merck Company Foundation, the Earth Institute at Columbia University launched a community health worker training program to strengthen community health services for over 400,000 people in 10 African countries as part of the Millennium Villages project. The initiative aims to develop a professional cadre of 800 community health workers to fill a critical gap in primary healthcare provision for rural communities throughout Africa.

Leprosy Elimination

Novartis is providing free treatment for leprosy patients worldwide through its multi-drug therapy.

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