The Millennium Foundation for Innovative Finance for Health today announced MASSIVEGOOD, a new, innovative travel-related fundraising initiative that will help finance health care for the world's poor. During a high level meeting at the United Nations, leading representatives of the global travel and tourism industry joined, for the first time ever, to declare their support for this program.
The initiative will allow travelers to give a small $2 voluntary 'micro-contribution' every time they purchase travel services which will go towards fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in developing countries through a WHO-hosted organization, UNITAID.
The announcement was made on the first day of the UN General Assembly during a meeting of the Task Force for Innovative Finance for Health, spearheaded by UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and World Bank President Robert Zoellick in the presence of numerous heads of state from developed and developing countries, and leaders of the travel and tourism industry.
MASSIVEGOOD, which is on track for launch in early 2010, has the potential to raise up to $1 billion in additional funding for global health during its first four years of operation while helping reduce the important inequalities in access to health care between the rich and the poor.
"The biggest crisis the world is facing is the glaring inequalities in access to health care between the rich and the poor," stated Dr. Philippe Douste-Blazy, Chairman of the Millennium Foundation, United Nations Under-Secretary and Special Advisor for Innovative Finance for Development.
"Our message is quite simple: you can help change the world one click at a time from where you are sitting and join a movement that will do MASSIVEGOOD," added Dr. Bernard Salomé, the Foundation's managing director.