GSK partners with Save the Children

GSK has entered into a unique new partnership with the charity Save the Children to save the lives of one million of the poorest children in areas such as Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America.

While the two companies have been working together for the past eight years, for the first time, in this new partnership, Save the Children will be involved in helping GSK to research and develop medicines for children. The charity will have a seat on a new pediatric R&D board to accelerate the progress on innovative life-saving treatments for the under-fives. These innovative treatments include the transformation of an antiseptic used in mouthwash into a life-saving product for newborns and the roll-out of a powder-form of an antibiotic in child-friendly doses to help fight pneumonia.

This news follows the announcement that GSK, as well as fellow pharma company Merck, have agreed to provide a sustained supply of cervical cancer vaccines to some of the world's least developed countries in partnership with GAVI Alliance and UNICEF.

GSK's new partnership with Save the Children will also focus on widening vaccine coverage, as well as increasing the investment in health workers and working to develop a low-cost nutritional product to help combat child malnutrition.

"This ground breaking partnership involves both organisations working in genuinely new ways to save the lives of a million children. In the past Save the Children may not have embarked on a collaboration with a pharmaceutical company like GSK. But we believe we can make huge gains for children if we harness the power of GSK's innovation, research and global reach."

Justin Forsyth, the Chief Executive of Save the Children.

Flagship programmes will run initially in Democratic Republic of Congo and Kenya and will be closely monitored so that the programmes can be replicated in other developing countries.

GSK and Save the Children's collaboration aims to save the lives of one million children in the next few years. This is because while good progress has been made in recent years, almost seven million children in 2011 due to lack of access to basic healthcare, vaccines or nutritious food.

"A partnership of this scale gives us an opportunity to do something amazing – to save the lives of one million children and to transform the lives of millions more. At GSK we are motivated by developing innovative life-saving medicines and getting them to the people that need them. By joining forces with Save the Children, we can amplify these efforts to create a new momentum for change and stop children dying from preventable diseases. I hope this partnership inspires GSK employees and sets a new standard for how companies and NGOs can work together towards a shared goal."

Sir Andrew Witty, CEO of GSK.