IRIN News
30 April 2002
Ethiopia:
$7 Million Awarded to Tackle Killer Diseases
ADDIS
ABABA - Ethiopia has been awarded more than US $7 million
as part of the Fund to tackle diseases, backed by computer
billionaire Bill Gates.
The
award is part of a multi-million dollar package announced
in New York recently, and which gives a large proportion of
the money to African countries.
The
money will be used to fight AIDS, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria
- three of the world's biggest killers. In Africa alone, a
total of US $641 million was requested to help fight the diseases
under the first grant awards announced by the Fund.
Gates, who founded the computer giant Microsoft, has pledged
US $100 million to the Fund for AIDS and health.
The Fund was set up in June 2001 after a summit organised
by the United Nations, and specifically targets the three
killer diseases. They are the cause of almost six million
deaths a year - 10 percent of global deaths.
Without the Fund, total expenditures to fight HIV/AIDS,
TB, and malaria in the developing world would be approximately
US $1.6 billion in 2002. But the Fund has helped increase
resources by US $700-800 million - effectively increasing
global spending on these epidemics by 50 percent in its first
year of operation.
Around
58 countries have applied for funding from the Fund,
which is an independent, public-private partnership.

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