Bamako, Mali, 31 October 2012 - Gold mining companies in Mali will donate US$735 000 in emergency funding to avert an interruption of the Mass Drug Administration (MDA) programme fighting a range of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) endemic to that country.
The donations by Randgold Resources, Avion Gold including personal donations by its shareholders Forbes & Manhattan and executives John Begeman and Don Dudek, AngloGold Ashanti, IAMGOLD, Resolute Mining, Gold Fields and African Mining & Exploration, are being made to The End Fund, a non-governmental organisation committed to providing access to treatment for these NTDs.
The government of Mali is also effectively making a significant donation through its shareholding in the various gold mining operations. The development organisation Helen Keller International will use these funds to support its partners in the mass distribution of the drugs needed to treat these diseases without interruption.
Since the inception of the programme in 2007, with funding provided by USAID, significant progress has been made in reducing the incidence, prevalence and intensity of these diseases among Mali’s population of 11 million. However, the coup in Mali earlier this year prompted USAID to suspend its funding, threatening continued implementation of the treatment programme.
NTDs are a group of debilitating conditions, primarily found in impoverished areas, which can cause blindness, chronic pain, severe disability, disfigurement, and malnutrition. They reduce productivity and can cripple the country’s potential for social development and economic growth. Although there are inexpensive, safe and effective treatments available for NTDs, eradicating them requires consecutive treatments and post-endemic surveillance for many years.
For further information please contact:
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RANDGOLD RESOURCES LIMITED
(Morila SA, Gounkoto SA, Somilo SA)
- Mark Bristow
CEO
+44 788 071 1386 / +223 66 75 01 22
- Mahamadou Samaké
Group regional manager West Africa
+223 66 75 61 36 / +223 20 20 16 94
- Kathy du Plessis
Investor and media relations
+44 20 7557 7738 or randgoldresources@dpapr.com
www.randgoldresources.com
Listing information – LSE: RRS / Nasdaq: GOLD |
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AVION GOLD CORPORATION
(Segala Mining Company SA)
- Daniel Rousseau
General manager Segala
+1 647 258 6011 / +223 73 99 99 90
www.aviongoldcorp.com
Listing information – TSX: AVR / OTCQX: AVGCF
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ANGLOGOLD ASHANTI LIMITED
(Morila SA, Semos SA)
- Christian Rampa Luhambwe
Senior VP West Africa
+221 77 332 14 44
- François Philippart
VP sustainability Mali
+223 66 75 26 00
- Mamadou Coulibaly
Country manager Mali
+223 66 75 06 05
www.anglogoldashanti.co.za
Listing information – JSE: ANG / NYSE: AU / ASX: AGG / LSE: AGD / GhSE: AGA, AAD |
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IAMGOLD CORPORATION
(Semos SA)
- Malcolm Versel
Manager sustainability and government relations Africa
+221 77 639 1717
www.iamgold.com
Listing Information – TSX: IMG / NYSE: IAG
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RESOLUTE MINING LIMITED
(Somisy SA)
- Guy Riopel
General manager
+223 20 21 24 32 / +223 66 75 05 00
www.rml.com.au
Listing information – ASX: RSG |
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GOLD FIELDS LIMITED
- Sharda Naidoo
Head of corporate affairs West Africa
+27 83 560 1769 / +233 544 33 81 38
www.goldfields.co.za
Listing Information – JSE/NYSE/NASDAQ/Dubai: GFI / NYX: GFLB / SWX: GOLI |
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AFRICAN MINING & EXPLORATION PLC
- Mark Jones
CEO
+44 207 499 5881
- Dominic Doherty
Regional manager
+223 76 94 58 83
- Felicity Edwards
Investor & media relations, St Brides
+44 207 236 1177
www.ameplc.co.uk
Listing information – LSE-AIM: AME.L |
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THE END FUND
- Ellen Agler
CEO
+1 610 254 0000 / +1 917 207 4400 / eagler@endfund.org
www.endfund.org
HELEN KELLER INTERNATIONAL
- Kathy Tilford
Acting country director Mali
+223 66 75 57 66 / ktilford@hki.org
- Jennifer S Klopp
VP development and communications
+1 646 472 0355 / jklopp@hki.org
www.hki.org |