LONDON, May 10 (UPI) -- Pharmaceuticals manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline and the Save the Children charity announced a partnership to develop medicines to combat child mortality in Africa.
The company said the partnership would set a new standard for how companies and charities can work together.
In reference to Save the Children, Andrew Witty, GlaxoSmithKline executive director, said: "For the first time we're involving a voice from an NGO (non-governmental organization) in our research and development agenda setting, for our pediatric development programs focused on the developing world. A partnership of this scale gives us an opportunity to do something amazing."
Flagship programs will begin in Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the company said in a release.
Witty said his firm expects to give about $23 million to Save the Children over the next several years.
