A GRANT of $28 million to combat disease in African farm animals aims to save the livelihoods of some of the world's poorest farmers. Currently, an estimated one-quarter of all livestock in the developing world die from preventable diseases each year.
The grant was given to the Global Alliance for Livestock Veterinary Medicines (GALVmed), a non-profit UK agency, by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the UK Department for International Development.
The first disease to be tackled is East Coast fever, which costs Africa $200 million every year. "African governments used to make a vaccine," says Steve Sloan of GALVmed, but this stopped when many state veterinary services were dismantled during the 1990s debt crisis.
GALVmed hopes to launch vaccines or drugs for six major livestock diseases by 2015. The list includes Rift Valley fever, which killed thousands of animals and hundreds of people in an outbreak in 2007, and is now spreading out of Africa.
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Have your say
Grants For Plants Too
Sat Oct 11 17:07:38 BST 2008 by Ralph Propst
Bill should also give grants to bio tech schools to develop new plant varieties that can fix nitrogen by using a newly discovered organism's DNA which was found in a gold mine.
This new organism is self sufficient. It has the DNA enabling it to fix carbon and fix nitrogen. This means that its DNA for fixing nitrogen could theoretically be transferred to corn(maize) plants the same way Bt from bacillus Dna has been to kill lepidoptra. If this becomes a reality it means corn would no longer need to have huge amounts of nitrogen fertilizer applied to the field. It could fix its own nitrogen. The results would mean no more nitrogen pollution from corn fields causing dead zones in the gulf of Mexico and cleaner water virtually everywhere corn is grown. Also it would make more food available in poor countries where fertilizer is in short supply. Also it would make bio fuels more energy efficient than they already are.
This organisms DNA may be the savior of humanity's food supply.
That's A Lot Of Money
Sat Oct 11 18:38:02 BST 2008 by Emre
Way to go Bill and Melinda, truly making a difference in the world! I was being sarcastic. Gates donating his loose pocket change is too little, too late! Andrew Carnegie gave away 90% of his fortune to build schools and for other worthy causes. It's wealthy and generous businessmen like Andrew Carnegie we have to thank for building this country. Greedy businessmen like Gates don't care about their country. They outsource jobs to foreign countries. Forget about donating money to education because Gates would rather steal money from schools by making them pay for outrageously overpriced computers. I blame Gates and other rich and greedy businessmen for America's failing educational system.
That's A Lot Of Money
Sat Oct 11 21:35:27 BST 2008 by Joe Sheehy
Total giving by Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller during their lifetimes (in
2003 dollars): $14 billion
Total amount given or pledged by Bill and Melinda Gates by 2003: $23 billion
Source: http://tiny.cc/nGNma
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (B&MGF) is the largest transparently operated[2] private foundation in the world, founded by Bill and Melinda Gates in 2000 and doubled in size by Warren Buffett in 2006. The primary aims of the foundation are, globally, to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty, and, in the United States, to expand educational opportunities and access to information technology. The foundation, based in Seattle, Washington, is controlled by its three trustees: Bill Gates, Melinda Gates, and Warren Buffett. Other principal officers include Co-Chair William H. Gates, Sr. And Chief Executive Officer Jeff Raikes. It has an endowment of US$38.7 billion as of December 31, 2007.
Source: wikipedia.org
Yea, thats 38.7 BILLION as of last year.
Thats right, TWENTY FOUR POINT SEVEN *BILLION* UNITED STATED DOLLARS *MORE* THEN ANDREW CARNEGIE & JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER *COMBINED* (over their *ENTIRE LIFE SPANS*).
Instead of "blaming" two of the worlds biggest philanthrophists in regards to completely unfounded and made up claims, why dont you go and donate 5 dollars to UNICEF or something.
Oh, and I'm NOT being sarcastic.
FYI, there is a new school being built opposite to my home here in southern California in San Diego, dubbed "High Tech High". Over 75% of this state of the art high school's funding is coming from the The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and thats just the building cost. Microsoft is also donating ALL of the computers and software used there in as well.
As for your "over priced computers", last I checked PCs are the most cost effective and cheapest computers on the market today. In fact the prices have dropped do dramatically over the recent years, one can get a fully functional (for everything other then playing the latest video games)laptop or PC for WELL under $800 USD. Something that Apple Computer cant even begin to match.
Next time you want to spout off about a subject you absolutely know nothing about, do your self a favor and at least Google up the "facts" you are trying pass off as truth.
M-kay? Thanks.
That's A Lot Of Money
Sun Oct 12 04:55:04 BST 2008 by Emre
BRAVO! Thank you for giving a bunch of numbers to support your cause, conveniently leaving out important details. FYI, Rockefeller was a robber baron whose wealth came from monopolizing the oil industry, he was as bad as Bill whose wealth came from monopolizing the computer operating system industry.
You say PCs are the most cost effective computers? That's lovely to know that you think Personal Computers are the most cost effective computers out there, and then you go on to say Apple can't even begin to match that... Oh wait a second... Do you know what Apple does? "Apple Inc. Designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers", well what a coincidence! Personal Computers, AKA PCs. If you weren't so brainwashed by the "Mac vs. PC" marketing, you would have known this. Wake up, they're all PCs.
Bill donating "software" is a moot point. It costs him NOTHING to put Windows on a computer, so what exactly is he donating? To give a hypothetical example: I'll create a ****** piece of software, charge $100 for each license, and donate 500000 copies to schools around the country. Did I just make a $50000000 donation? Turns out I really have, even though it cost me nothing. Bill's donating his own software is NOT a real donation. In fact, the agreements they have with these schools state that they can not install any other OS on the machines. They are forced to use this 'donated' Operating System. Bill isn't trying to educate kids, it's a whole strategy to lock people into the Windows system so when they go out into the real world they know nothing but Windows. Schools don't need computer propaganda, schools need books, desks and teachers. What will be next, Philip Morris donating cigarettes to schools?? There is already a High Tech High in Philadelphia. It's nothing but a $63 million advertisement and brainwashing temple for Microsoft.
Next time you want to spout off about a subject you absolutely know nothing about, do everyone a favor and stfu. The world doesn't need more brainwashed drones repeating what the telly tells them.
M-kay is not a word.
That's A Lot Of Money
Sat Oct 11 21:50:14 BST 2008 by Author Millen Sr.
Heh, it sounds like Emre here is jealous about the Gate's success more then anything given his wildly unfounded propaganda spewing. Good call on that info BTW, Joe! I love it when people are put in their respective place.
That's A Lot Of Money
Sun Oct 12 05:02:44 BST 2008 by Emre
Learn the difference between "then" and "than".
That's A Lot Of Money
Sun Oct 12 08:33:16 BST 2008 by Luke
Learn how to come up with ways to attack someone without having to resort to nitpicking at their spelling and grammar.
Wonder Why
Sun Oct 12 05:57:19 BST 2008 by Someone
Try lowering their hormones and all the trash they are injected to make them produce more meat, milk etc. And you will see a drop in deaths. The solution is not more drugs and antibiotics.
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