Canada's International Development Research Centre with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Global Affairs Canada has launched a Livestock Vaccine Innovation Fund.
The 5-and-a-half-year, $57-million partnership is expected to improve the health of livestock and the livelihoods of farmers.
The fund is also expected to spur the discovery of new vaccines and delivery methods for neglected livestock diseases. Existing vaccines will also be made more accessible, safer, and affordable for small-scale farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and South and South East Asia – two-thirds of whom are women.
Livestock provide both income and nutrition for more than 1-billion farmers globally including 300-million poor livestock keepers and their families.
Healthy livestock can help reverse the cycle of poverty but one quarter of the animals owned by poor livestock keepers die from disease.
Those diseases that do not lead to death can result in decreased productivity or can be passed on to humans, causing serious illness or death.
The fund will focus on developing innovative solutions for neglected livestock diseases.
Vaccine researchers will work with manufacturers and distributors to develop and bring to market safe, affordable and effective vaccines.
