02/10/03

Time for Gates to speak up about neglected diseases

We encourage you to republish this article online and in print, it’s free under our creative commons attribution license, but please follow some simple guidelines:

You have to credit our authors.
You have to credit SciDev.Net — where possible include our logo with a link back to the original article.
You can simply run the first few lines of the article and then add: “Read the full article on SciDev.Net” containing a link back to the original article.
If you want to also take images published in this story you will need to confirm with the original source if you're licensed to use them.
The easiest way to get the article on your site is to embed the code below.

For more information view our media page and republishing guidelines.

The full article is available here as HTML.

Press Ctrl-C to copy

<div class="article-wrap">
<div id="article-introduction">
<h1>Time for Gates to speak up about neglected diseases</h1>
<h4></h4>
</div>
<br />
<br />

<div id="article-body">
<p><P>Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates is one of the world’s major funders of health research, so he should start making use of his influence, according to an editorial in <em>Nature</em> this week. </P><br />
<P>Gates’ main interest is bridging the gap between basic research and drug development in neglected diseases. As a single-minded businessman, he has cut through bureaucracy and set up model systems: for example, providing essential vaccines to some 30 million children since 1999. </P><br />
<P>Faced with the choice between current and future needs, the Foundation’s initial strategy to tackle the biggest disease burdens cannot be faulted. But now it’s time for Gates to speak out, says the journal, and get world leaders to commit to practical solutions. </P><br />
<P><a href="http://www.nature.com/login/scidev_login.taf?ref=/nature/journal/v425/n6957/full/425435a_fs.html" target="_blank" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/tracking/external/'+this.href);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Link to full <em>Nature </em>editorial</A></P><br />
<P>Reference: <em>Nature </em>425, 435 (2003)</P></p>

</div>
<div class="quick-links-wrapper">
<h3>You might also like</h3>
[related-articles]
</div>
<p>This article was originally published on <a href="https://www.scidev.net" target="_blank">SciDev.Net</a>. Read the <a href="https://www.scidev.net/sub-saharan-africa/opinions/time-for-gates-to-speak-up-about-neglected-disease-ssa/" target="_blank">original article</a>.</p>
<script type="text/javascript">
(function(e,t,n,r,i,s,o){e["GoogleAnalyticsObject"]=i;e[i]=e[i]||function(){(e[i].q=e[i].q||[]).push(arguments)},e[i].l=1*new Date;s=t.createElement(n),o=t.getElementsByTagName(n)[0];s.async=1;s.src=r;o.parentNode.insertBefore(s,o)})(window,document,"script","//www.google-analytics.com/ga.js","ga");var _gaq=_gaq||[];var _gaq=_gaq||[];_gaq.push(["_setAccount","UA-3223906-8"],["_trackEvent","article interaction","republished","https://www.scidev.net/sub-saharan-africa/opinions/time-for-gates-to-speak-up-about-neglected-disease-ssa/",null,true])
</script>
</div>

Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates is one of the world’s major funders of health research, so he should start making use of his influence, according to an editorial in Nature this week.

Gates’ main interest is bridging the gap between basic research and drug development in neglected diseases. As a single-minded businessman, he has cut through bureaucracy and set up model systems: for example, providing essential vaccines to some 30 million children since 1999.

Faced with the choice between current and future needs, the Foundation’s initial strategy to tackle the biggest disease burdens cannot be faulted. But now it’s time for Gates to speak out, says the journal, and get world leaders to commit to practical solutions.

Link to full Nature editorial

Reference: Nature 425, 435 (2003)