Denmark and the Gates Foundation strengthen ties to find solutions to the impact of climate change for global health

According to the UN, climate change and global warming accelerate risks to human health. They also lead to the spread of diseases such as malaria to parts of the world where the population has not previously been exposed to the disease. In fact, a study from 2022 shows that the transmission of over half of 375 different infectious diseases has been intensified by climate change.

"Working together with a strong foundation like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, we can make a significant difference for some of the most climate-vulnerable developing countries. Combining our Danish efforts with the Gates Foundation’s has great potential to promote innovative solutions to the major health problems accelerated by climate change. There is a great need for us to strengthen climate adaptation in developing countries," says Dan Jørgensen.

With the agreement, the Danish government and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will further deepen their ongoing partnership to strengthen the global health response to current and emerging challenges, as well as to climate adaptation.

“I am excited to strengthen the Gates Foundation’s collaboration with the Danish government. Denmark has played a vital role in the extraordinary gains the world has made in global health and development over the last 25 years. For example, the founding support Denmark provided to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, has helped deliver life-saving vaccines to more than 1 billion children. With this agreement, we will continue to partner to fight inequities in global health, including supporting global access to routine immunization.  We will also expand our collaboration to other critical areas, such as helping farmers adapt to climate change. I’m optimistic that together, we can make meaningful progress against these tough challenges.”

"Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is a natural partner for Denmark when we look at the challenges created by climate change and at the same time need to connect to new solutions. The foundation has insights and expertise in a range of areas that the Danish government supports: Climate action in relation to global health, climate-resilient agricultural development, and food security. At the same time, the foundation employs innovative solutions and research effectively. It is crucial to make interventions more effective so that we reach more people with the same resources," says Dan Jørgensen.

Background

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is one of the world's largest philanthropic organizations and a contributor to global development, particularly in the areas of global health, agricultural development, and food security. The Foundation was founded by Bill Gates and Melinda Gates in 2000, and in 2022, their charitable contributions amounted to around 7 billion US dollars. The main purpose of the Foundation is to improve basic health services and reduce extreme poverty. The Foundation supports, among other things, the fight against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, as well as polio. The Foundation has activities in 140 countries. In the USA, the Foundation works on issues such as equal access to education. The Foundation works in partnerships with international organizations, governments, researchers, the private sector, and local partners.

Denmark supports a number of multilateral organizations in the field of global health, including the World Health Organization, WHO, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GFATM), the Global Vaccine Alliance, GAVI, and UNAIDS, among others. In the climate field, Denmark supports a wide range of climate initiatives, including support for research and innovation in the agriculture and food sector through CGIAR, the world's largest network of agricultural research, and through UN's Food and Agriculture Organization IFAD, WFP and FAO, and the World Bank.