The Global Health Innovative Technology (GHIT) Fund has welcomed Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Ono) to join GHIT as a new affiliate partner. Ono, headquartered in Osaka, Japan, is a research and development (R&D)-oriented pharmaceutical company and a pioneer in the field of immuno-oncology. With the addition of Ono, GHIT now counts 21 public and private organizations as funding partners.

"Ono's partnership with GHIT underscores the strong commitment of industry to global health R&D. GHIT's inception was led by industry and now 16 life science companies are GHIT funding partners together with the Government of Japan, the United Nations Development Programme, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Wellcome Trust. Ono's engagement increases GHIT's momentum toward accelerated product development for patients worldwide afflicted with infectious diseases," said Dr. BT Slingsby, CEO of the GHIT Fund.

Gyo Sagara, Ono's President, Representative Director, and CEO, said, "We sincerely support GHIT's efforts to combat infectious diseases in low- and middle-income countries. Ono's corporate philosophy is 'Dedicated to Man's Fight against Disease and Pain" and our key business pillars are 1. R&D for innovative products,2.Creating a technology platform, and 3.Building partnerships. Based on the concept, we aim to improve access to healthcare around the world. We are confident that our engagement with GHIT can help accelerate R&D for patients in low-and middle-income countries."

The first of its kind in Japan, the GHIT Fund is an international public-private partnership between the Government of Japan, multiple pharmaceutical companies, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). 

The GHIT Fund invests and manages a portfolio of development partnerships aimed at neglected diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and neglected tropical diseases that afflict the world's poorest people. The GHIT Fund mobilizes Japanese pharmaceutical companies, academic and research organizations to engage in the effort to create new drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics.