Global Health Council Receives $10,000,000 Grant from the Gates Foundation for Global Health Education Program 10/6/2003
From: Lynnette Johnson Williams of the Global Health Council, 202-327-5003 (office); ljohnsonwilliams@globalhealth.org; Web site: http://www.globalhealth.org WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 -- The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded a $10 million grant to the Global Health Council to support the Council's education and outreach programs on key global health issues. Dr. Nils Daulaire, president and CEO of the Council, said the Foundation cited the Council as "a leading voice for global health" upon awarding the five-year grant. "This generous grant will help the Council and our members to reach our ultimate goal -- saving lives by improving health throughout the world," said Dr. Daulaire. Daulaire said the Council's objectives over the next five years are to increase Americans' understanding and commitment to taking action on global health, and to ensure that policy decisions are informed by what works in the field. The Gates Foundation grant will support the Council in its efforts to make sure that the world's poorest people have access to basic health care. The Council's programs and activities including briefings for policymakers, the public and reporters, online and print publications, the annual international conference, and global health policy research and analysis. "We are delighted to be continuing our support for the Global Health Council," said Bill Gates, Sr., co-chair of the Gates Foundation. "This grant will help the Council to build awareness of the urgent health needs in the developing world, and to help increase the effectiveness of health programs in the field." Over the past three years, the Council has revitalized and expanded a network of individuals and organizations committed to improving global health equity. The Council serves and represents thousands of public health professionals from 103 countries on six continents and a growing number of private citizens who are concerned about health around the world. The Council's core issues include women's health, child health, HIV/AIDS, infectious diseases and evolving health threats. "So much remains to be done to reach global health equity and the stakes are extraordinarily high," Daulaire said. "One of every 15 young women entering adolescence in Sub-Saharan Africa today will die in pregnancy or childbirth before she completes her childbearing years." He added: "An additional five million children, women and men will be infected with HIV around the world this year, joining the more than 60 million already infected or dead as a result of AIDS. Over ten million children around the world will die from diseases that we know how to prevent and treat. We can save millions of lives if assistance and resources are provided where they are most needed." The Global Health Council is the world's largest membership alliance dedicated to saving lives by improving health throughout the world. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is building upon the unprecedented opportunities of the 21st century to improve equity in global health and learning. Led by Bill Gates' father, William H. Gates, Sr., and Patty Stonesifer, the Seattle-based foundation has an endowment of approximately $25 billion. ------ The Global Health Council is the world's largest membership alliance dedicated to saving lives by improving health throughout the world. |