Sandoz Commits to New UN Program to Combat Child Mortality

Sandoz has made a long-term commitment to supply a key antibiotic formulation as part of the United Nations' new Every Newborn Action Plan, which aims to eliminate preventable deaths of newborn and stillborn babies. The commitment involves providing long-term global supplies of amoxicillin 250 mg dispersible tablets to developing countries via the UN Commission for Lifesaving Commodities.

More than five million children under five are estimated to die worldwide every year, mainly in Africa and Asia, and nearly a quarter of those deaths are due to pneumonia alone, making it the single largest killer in that age range, a press release reported. In 2011, the World Health Organization updated its recommendations for home treatment of pneumonia, establishing dispersible amoxicillin as the newly recommended first-line treatment for pneumonia in children under five.

"Sandoz is proud to be jointly leading the response to the growing global need for this new formulation of a critical anti-infective", said Nick Haggar, head of Western Europe, Middle East, and Africa for Sandoz. "We are committed to working in partnership with all concerned to help prevent the needless deaths of hundreds of thousands of children every year. In our first year of supply, we hope to reach at least 500,000 children worldwide."