The Department for International Development (DFID) is providing £10 million to the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), which is a product development partnership developing new drugs for malaria. A further £6.5 million is being provided to the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi). The DNDi is also a product development partnership developing new drugs for a number of neglected tropical diseases, including malaria. DNDi launched two new fixed dose artemisinin combination drugs in 2007 and 2008 and to date over one million courses of these drugs have been distributed in developing countries.
Two research programme consortia on communicable diseases, including malaria, are also supported by DFID. They are led by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Nuffield Institute for International Health at Leeds University. Each of these consortia will receive a total of £5 million over five years.
DFID supports work on malaria prevention through its support to international organisations such as the World Health Organisation, UNICEF and the World Bank all of whom have programmes on malaria. In addition support is being provided to global health partnerships such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM), UNITAID, and the Roll Back Malaria Partnership. DFID has made a commitment to provide £1 billion to the GFATM from 2008 to 2015. DFID is also providing support for prevention through our country programmes, which includes a commitment to provide 20 million insecticide treated bed nets over three years made by the Prime Minister in 2008.