World Diabetes Foundation
The World Diabetes Foundation (WDF) is dedicated to supporting the prevention and treatment of diabetes in the developing world through the funding of sustainable projects. At its core lies the promise of equal access to diabetes care.
WDF was established by Novo Nordisk A/S in 2002 through a commitment of 500 million Danish kroner (85 million US dollars) to be spent over a 10-year period. WDF is registered as an independent trust and is governed by a board of six experts in the field of diabetes, access to health and development assistance.
In 2006, more than 900,000 Danish kroner was donated by Novo Nordisk and raised through fundraising activities by Novo Nordisk employees. These funds have been allocated to support 11 ongoing WDF fundraising projects in developing countries.
Performance 2006
In 2006 WDF organised its third ‘Global Diabetes Walk’ on World Diabetes Day, 14 November. This year’s event consisted of 480 individually organised walks taking place in 55 different countries worldwide. Thanks to the impressive support from people all over the world, the 2006 walk was the biggest in the history of WDF with a total of over 160,000 participants. On this occasion, particular emphasis was placed on the ‘Unite for Diabetes’ campaign, which aimed to secure a UN Resolution on diabetes. Participants included local diabetes organisations, the pharmaceutical industry, WDF project partners and thousands of people from around the world.
Other 2006 activities included:
- WDF Diabetes Summit in Hanoi, Vietnam. The first series of regional initiatives. Participants included diabetes experts, health authorities, bilateral donors, and other key opinion leaders.
- Co-hosting of a WDF diabetes symposium with EAGLES (European Action on Global Life Sciences) in Alexandria, Egypt.
- Support and promotion of the ‘Unite for Diabetes’ campaign, led by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), which aimed to secure a UN Resolution on diabetes. The resolution was adopted by the General Assembly of the UN on 20 December 2006.
- Support of ‘Diabetes Action Now’, a joint programme of the World Health Organization and IDF, which aims to improve delivery of diabetes care by raising awareness of diabetes globally through increased advocacy and action.
To date, WDF has funded 95 projects focusing on diabetes awareness, education and capacity-building at local, regional and global levels. The total portfolio amounts to 92.9 million US dollars of which 30.2 million US dollars have been donated by the Foundation. Potentially, the projects funded by WDF will directly influence diabetes awareness, advocacy and treatment of 40.5 million people.
For more information about WDF please visit www.worlddiabetesfoundation.org.
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