ExxonMobil Marks World Malaria Day with Activities and Grants
Partnership with "Idol Gives Back" Raises Money and Awareness
-- New funding brings ExxonMobil's commitment to Africa community outreach programs to $193 million in the past 10 years -- Total ExxonMobil contributions to fight malaria reach $69 million since 2000 -- Corporate activities planned on two continents on World Malaria Day to raise funds and awareness
IRVING, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In commemoration of World Malaria Day on April 25, ExxonMobil announced today new funding and additional efforts to combat the disease and raise awareness, including a renewed partnership with "American Idol."
ExxonMobil has sponsored the concert venue for tonight's broadcast of "Idol Gives Back" on FOX stations across the United States and beyond. The sponsorship will enable proceeds from ticket sales for the two-hour concert to benefit five U.S. and international charities. ExxonMobil announced a donation of $1.1 million to anti-malaria efforts through Idol Gives Back and hosted Idol celebrities on a trip in Africa to see the effects of malaria and the benefits from previous Idol Gives Back efforts.
The new funding brings ExxonMobil's 10-year commitment to Africa community outreach programs to $193 million, including $69 million on programs to fight malaria. ExxonMobil has donated more than $14 million through Idol Gives Back, enabling the distribution of hundreds of thousands of bed nets throughout communities in Africa in addition to education and training of health care workers and local leaders.
"Malaria is the leading killer of young children in Africa, where more than 90 percent of malaria cases can be found," said Rex W. Tillerson, chairman and chief executive officer of ExxonMobil.
"The great tragedy is that this disease is preventable. ExxonMobil is committed to fighting this disease by providing and distributing life-saving bed nets, raising awareness in the communities where we operate, and funding research and development into new medications, training and education."
"World Malaria Day is an opportunity to call attention to the devastating impact of malaria on millions of people around the world, many of whom cannot afford insecticide-treated nets or medication that would protect their families."
This year, ExxonMobil will participate in a number of other activities on World Malaria Day to highlight the progress our partners have made fighting this disease and to recruit more champions for these efforts.
-- In Africa, ExxonMobil employees and our partners will help educate communities about malaria by distributing bed nets and multi-lingual educational materials in Angola, Cameroon, Chad, Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria. -- To increase awareness about malaria in the Washington, D.C., area, ExxonMobil is working with its partner, the Washington Nationals baseball team, to honor World Malaria Day at a game on April 24. American Idol finalist Elliott Yamin will sing the national anthem, and fans at the game will receive information on malaria and its impact in Africa. -- ExxonMobil has created a highly visible display about the effects of malaria and the work being done to combat it at the John F Kennedy International Airport in New York City. This multi-media experience is part of a larger corporate communications effort to draw attention to the disease.
ExxonMobil believes that a multifaceted approach is necessary to tackle malaria, including working with governments, non-governmental organizations, foundations, the private sector and media outlets with the same disciplined, results-based business practices that ExxonMobil employs in its global operations.
The charities receiving the funding from the Idol Gives Back program are the Children's Health Fund, Feeding America, Malaria No More, Save the Children and United Nations Foundation.
ExxonMobil and Malaria
Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) and ExxonMobil Foundation engage in a range of philanthropic activities that advance education, health and science in the communities where ExxonMobil has significant operations. Globally, ExxonMobil provides funding to improve basic education and combat malaria and other infectious diseases in developing countries. ExxonMobil is the largest non-pharmaceutical corporate donor to malaria research and development efforts, and since 2000 has committed $193 million to Africa community outreach programs, including $69 million on programs to fight malaria. The company established its Malaria Initiative in 2000 to support of the Abuja Declaration on Roll Back Malaria in Africa and national malaria plans in countries where we operate. Since then, ExxonMobil has developed on-the-ground public-private partnerships to fight malaria at the community level, progress treatment and vaccine research and raise awareness and international support, and contributes to anti-malaria efforts in more than 20 African countries.
Source: Exxon Mobil Corporation
Released April 21, 2010