IRVING, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr. 23, 2009-- In commemoration of World Malaria Day on April 25, ExxonMobil announced today a donation of an additional $1 million to help USAID in its ongoing efforts to fight malaria in Angola. The new funding brings ExxonMobil’s commitment to organizations engaged in important community and social development projects in Africa to more than $150 million, which includes $55 million committed to programs to fight malaria through the company’s Africa Health Initiative.

The grant will support the President’s Malaria Initiative and will help train health-care workers in all aspects of malaria prevention and treatment, with a particular focus on the most vulnerable groups – pregnant women and young children. Since the initiation of the President’s Malaria Initiative in 2005 ExxonMobil has contributed $4 million to support its activities in Angola.

“World Malaria Day provides an opportunity to increase awareness and direct engagement in fighting the devastating consequences of this preventable disease,” said Rex W. Tillerson, chairman and chief executive officer of ExxonMobil. “I am very pleased that we have been able to mark this day by announcing our increased funding commitment for the President’s Malaria Initiative, which is a critical program in helping to reduce the toll of malaria.

“At ExxonMobil we know first hand the devastating impact that malaria is having in Africa, which suffers over 90 percent of global malaria cases and where it is the number one killer of young children. That is why we are committed to the fight and doing everything from helping to develop new drugs to distributing insecticide-treated nets to places where they are desperately needed.

“Despite the more difficult economic environment it is important that business takes a long term view with its community investments. With malaria in focus this week, we hope others will join us in supporting the Malaria Capital Campaign, which aims to raise $100 million to continue the fight against malaria. ExxonMobil has committed $10 million to help start the campaign.”

As a part of ExxonMobil’s ongoing goal to raise awareness about malaria with policy makers, employees will participate in important malaria dialogues in the US and Europe to improve understanding of the disease and find solutions on how to prevent and ultimately end deaths from malaria. ExxonMobil’s Medical Director for Global Health Issues, Dr. Steven Phillips, will address the One World Against Malaria Summit in Washington D.C. tomorrow.

Dr. Phillips will discuss some of the important international initiatives being developed to address malaria including an unprecedented malaria elimination effort in southern Africa. The Malaria Elimination Strategy, which seeks to expand cross border health initiatives between southern African countries to help fight malaria, is being pursued by the Global Health Group at the University of California San Francisco with support and funding from a $3.5 million grant from ExxonMobil.

As part of the World Malaria Day commemoration, ExxonMobil has also launched a new malaria web site, which contains information about the company’s efforts to stop malaria, as well as global experts talking about the role business can play in combating the disease. In addition ExxonMobil has launched a global advertising campaign to highlight the problem and some of the solutions we have put in place today.

Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by a parasite and transmitted to humans by the bite of a mosquito. With between 1 million and 3 million deaths annually and 3,000 children deaths daily, it remains one of the globe's leading infectious killers. The majority of its victims are children under the age of five and pregnant women.

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 $150 million to Africa community outreach programs, including $55 million on programs to fight malaria. The company established its Africa Health Initiative in 2000 in support of the Abuja Declaration on Roll Back Malaria in Africa and its goal to halve malaria deaths by 2010. 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.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=5946930&lang=en

Source: Exxon Mobil Corporation

ExxonMobil
Rob Young, 972-444-1108