Bill Gates invests US$ 40m in livestock vaccines
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will be funding US$?40 million over 5 years for the Global Alliance for Livestock Veterinary Medicines (GALVmed), a public-private partnership based in Edinburgh, UK.
GALVmed develops livestock vaccines, medicines and diagnostics and makes them accessible and affordable to millions of the poorest smallholder farmers across Africa and South Asia. The Gates Foundation also invests in additional agricultural innovation projects including the Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH) which utilizes cutting edge animal genetics and selective breeding to sustainably improve livestock productivity and resilience in developing countries as well as the Supporting Evidence Based Interventions project which looks at how data-sharing and accessibility can help inform better livestock decision making
Over 1.3 billion people depend on livestock for their livelihoods, but rearing livestock in developing countries is challenging. Diseases in livestock reduce farmers’ incomes and can pose serious risks to human health, with one quarter of the animals owned by poor farmers lost from preventable and treatable illnesses. As part of its mission to help all people live healthy and productive lives, the Gates Foundation is committed to supporting research that empowers farmers to lift their families out of poverty and contribute to a sustainable global food system.
Agriculture a lifeline out of poverty
Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said: “For over a billion people living in the world’s poorest countries, agriculture and livestock are a lifeline out of poverty. The science and research being led by the great minds here in Edinburgh are making huge strides in improving the health and productivity of livestock. With this investment in GALVmed, we can take advantage of the UK’s leading R&D capabilities to fight the spread of livestock diseases, both protecting animals in the developing world and here in the UK.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s investment of $ 40 million dollars will help GALVmed make vaccines, medicines and diagnostics accessible to millions of the world’s poorest smallholder farmers.”
Bill Gates visited the University of Edinburgh with Secretary of State Penny Mordaunt on January 26, 2018.
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