Italy, the United Kingdom and Canada have said they will create a US$1.5 billion fund to help develop vaccines for infectious diseases and curb infant mortality in the developing world in a pilot project run by the G-7 group of nations.
   
Italy will be the biggest donor, giving US$635 million, with the UK putting in US$485 million and Canada US$200 million, according to a statement released at a ceremony in Rome. Norway will contribute US$54 million and Russia will give US$80 million. Microsoft Corp Chairman and philanthropist Bill Gates will provide US$50 million, Bloomberg News said.
   
The three countries are committed to paying guaranteed prices for new vaccines for pneumococcus, a form of bacterial pneumonia that often afflicts children in poor countries. The contributors expect to vaccinate as many as 100 million people and save 5.5 million lives by 2030. The funds will be managed by the World Bank.
   
"It's the first step toward guaranteeing a series of vaccines that can save the lives of children that need it all around the world," Italian Finance Minister Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa said in Rome.
   
The vaccine project, that has been the object of G-7 talks for at least two years, failed to secure the backing of all the developed nations.

(Shanghai Daily February 13, 2007)