The Pfizer Foundation has announced the donation of $6.4 million in grants to address critical infectious disease challenges in Nigeria and Ghana as part of a long-term commitment to help protect underserved people in the United States and around the world. Grants to CARE, International Rescue Committee (IRC) and PATH will support programmes to reduce childhood mortality, improve maternal health and address the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the region.
“The global pandemic has magnified the disproportionate burden of infectious diseases, particularly in resource-limited settings where people have inadequate access to essential health services. We are proud to support the critical work of our partners in West Africa as they create localized approaches to bring quality health services to the community level and address persistent inequities in infectious disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment,” said Caroline Roan, President, Pfizer Foundation and Senior Vice President, Global Health & Social Impact, Pfizer Inc.
Globally nearly 8 million people lose their lives each year from infectious diseases that could be avoided with access to basic healthcare, often in the most underserved communities. Of those lives lost, more than 2 million are among children under-five, almost half of which take place in West Africa. Additionally, the growing risk of AMR is already having a profound impact on people today and, if left unchecked, by 2050 could lead to 10 million deaths from resistant infections each year.
source: thenationonlineng
