The Richard C. Holbrooke Business Leadership Award for Outstanding Contributions to Global Health is presented annually to a business leader or company that has demonstrated an enduring commitment to and excellence in the effort to create a healthier world.

2015: Aliko Dangote, Chairman and CEO, Dangote Group

photo-aliko-dangoteThe Award recognizes Aliko Dangote’s dedication to improving the lives of others through partnerships and advocacy. Dangote has been provided leadership in the fight to eradicate polio, served as an ambassador and advocate on malaria issues, and created high-impact business alliances such as the Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria.

Beyond Nigeria, Dangote responds with compassion and action to pressing health and development crisis giving millions of dollars in support of humanitarian efforts around the world and actively lends his time on Boards of the Clinton Global Initiative, Corporate Council on Africa, and the Global Education First Initiative.


2014: Laerdal Global Health 

laerdalA not-for-profit enterprise, Laerdal Global Health operates in support of UN Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 (to significantly reduce under-5 and maternal mortality by 2015) by developing simple, durable, culturally-appropriate and affordable products and programs that save the lives of mothers and newborns in low-resource settings. Its aim is to save 400,000 more lives per year by 2020 by helping to train and equip more than one million birth attendants, introduce 12-15 disruptive healthcare solutions and catalyze innovative partnerships. Learn more (link to press release)


2013: Pfizer and its Global Health Fellows Program

pFIZERCreated in 2003 as a platform to leverage the skills and expertise of the company’s employee base, Global Health Fellows spend three to six month-long stints with international organizations in the health and development space. Fellows work to improve and expand access to health services for populations in the host countries by building the capacity of host organizations. Fellows lend their expertise in specific business functions such as market research, financial management and supply chain optimization while providing programmatic support in communities. Learn more (link to website).


2012: HEINEKEN

Untitled-2For more than two decades HEINEKEN has demonstrated its commitment to tackling some of the most challenging global health issues of our time. From the company’s decision in 2001 to offer Highly Active Antiretroviral Treatment (HAART) as part of its employee medical benefits package to providing an essential corporate voice in shaping global health policy, HEINEKEN has been a trailblazer in the global health space.

Among its many health-related efforts, HEINEKEN has a comprehensive malaria program across its African operation that includes distribution of nets, rapid diagnostics, ACT treatment and Intermittent Preventive Treatment care for employees, families and communities. Through its HEINEKEN Africa Foundation and Subsidiary Nigerian Breweries, the company had entered into a partnership with the Hajia Gambo-Sawaba Hospital in Zaria, North Nigeria to focus on eliminating occurrences of Vesico-vaginal fistula (VVF) among women in the community. The program targets the root causes of poor health – curing those women who have VVF, offering a mechanism to prevent its occurrence through the clinic and staff, and empowering women and their families to reduce stigma associated with VVF.


2011: Robert Edward “Ted” Turner, III, Chairman, United Nations Foundation

photo-ted-turnerThroughout his career, Ted Turner has won recognition for his entrepreneurial acumen; sharp business skills; a vision that transformed television; leadership qualities that won sports championships; and his unprecedented philanthropy. Turner has also made his mark as one of the most influential philanthropists in the U.S. In September 1997, Turner announced his historic pledge of up to $1 billion to the United Nations Foundation (UNF). He now dedicates his time and resources to making the world a better, safer place for future generations. His current philanthropic interests include: the Turner Foundation, the United Nations Foundation, the Nuclear Threat Initiative, the Captain Planet Foundation, and the Turner Endangered Species Fund.


2011: George Soros, Chairman, Soros Fund Management; Founder and Chairman, Open Society Foundations

photo-george-sorosGeorge Soros has been a prominent international supporter of democratic ideals and causes for more than 30 years. Soros’s philanthropy has spawned a network of foundations dedicated to promoting development of open societies in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the United States. His philanthropic organization, the Open Society Foundations, supports democracy and human rights in over 60 countries. To date, Soros has given over $8 billion to support human rights, freedom of expression, and access to public health and education in 70 countries.


2010: National Basketball Association (NBA)/Womens’ National Basketball Association (WNBA)

nbawnba2By leveraging the remarkable reach of its brand and the star power of its players, and advancing innovative models for joint action across sectors, the NBA has been an extraordinary leader in the corporate fight to end disease. It’s commitment matched with impact-the company’s programs and partnerships have helped protect the lives of millions of people around the planet. The NBA and the WNBA are at the forefront of the fight against HIV/AIDS and malaria- whether it’s co-founding the Nothing But Nets campaign-which has deployed more than three million anti-malaria bed nets to people in need-or educating young people about HIV/AIDS prevention at its Basketball without Borders camps through partnerships with Hoops 4 Hope and other organizations. And it spreads its message through media, as it did in 2007 when it partnered with GBC, HBO and the Kaiser Family Foundation to create an Emmy Award-winning public service announcement promoting HIV testing.


2009: Chevron Corporation

HallmarkHE_R_vert_rgb_onscreenChevron has long been a leader in the fight for global health. That position was cemented in 2008, when the energy giant became The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria’s first-ever Corporate Champion—committing $30 million over three years to Global Fund activities to help control and eradicate these diseases in select countries in Asia and Africa.

Its healthcare work spans the globe, with many of the company’s approximately 120 physicians and 600 healthcare professionals supporting comprehensive HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria policies and programs that are both innovative and impactful. Chevron is one of the first companies to distribute bed nets to employees in malaria-affected regions, and in 2007 and 2008 the company distributed more than 230,000 condoms to employees and communities in areas with high rates of HIV/AIDS.


2009: Levi Strauss & Co.

LevisLevi Strauss & Co. has been actively involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS since the beginning of the epidemic. As early as 1982, Levi Strauss’ employees and executives started a grassroots educational effort that would quickly evolve into the first major corporate HIV/AIDS prevention initiative.

Levi Strauss extended its comprehensive HIV/AIDS treatment and care—including access to antiretroviral medication, counseling, preventive care, and education—to all Levi Strauss employees and their families worldwide. Through a Clinton Global Initiative commitment made in 2006, Levi Strauss is the first apparel company to provide such a global comprehensive program.

Consistently on the cutting edge of trends in business action, in 1991 Levi Strauss became the first multinational apparel company to establish a comprehensive ethical code of conduct for suppliers. The guidelines emphasize human rights, non-discrimination, health and safety for factory workers.