Novo Nordisk pledged $200 million to the World Diabetes Foundation from 2027 through 2036, aiming to extend diabetes prevention and care to underserved communities in low- and middle-income countries.
In its Nov. 11 announcement, Novo Nordisk cited World Diabetes Foundation estimates that 589 million adults worldwide have diabetes. About 80% of people ages 20 to 79 with the disease live in low- and middle-income countries, the foundation estimates.
Novo said the decade-long commitment is designed to give WDF more certainty for long-range planning, sustain partnerships and expand initiatives across regions and globally. The funding is intended to help the foundation and its partners deliver prevention and care through local health services and community programs, with a focus on more equitable access.
A Tanzania partnership offers one example of WDF’s earlier work, according to Novo. Over more than 20 years, it grew from a small diabetes clinic into a nationwide program for noncommunicable diseases owned by the government. The effort trained thousands of health workers and added treatment and referral guidance to the country’s public health system.
Novo said a WDF effort in Jordan brought better care to more than 192,000 people over five years, including refugees and host communities. The program added prevention, screening, counseling and treatment to services already in place. It also strengthened more than 190 facilities and trained more than 2,000 health providers.
World Diabetes Foundation Managing Director Leif Fenger Jensen said the pledge reflects 25 years of work supporting people with diabetes and related noncommunicable diseases. Novo Nordisk Senior Vice President Elin Jäger, also the company’s chief of staff to the CEO for Transformation & Sustainability, said the contribution is intended to reinforce local health systems and extend access to preventive and treatment services in underserved communities.
Novo Nordisk announced the commitment ahead of World Diabetes Day on Nov. 14.
