Today ViiV Healthcare awarded a total of £3.6m in grants to support 12 projects focused on preventing HIV transmission from mother-to-child, to improve the health and wellbeing of women, children and their families around the globe. These grants are the first of a series of grants that ViiV Healthcare will award as part of the £50 million Positive Action for Children Fund which was established in 2009 and will run for 10 years. Such work is closely aligned to the World Health Organization's strategic vision for addressing the mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

AIDS has become a leading cause of illness and death among women of reproductive age in countries with a high burden of HIV infection. More than 1400 children under 15 years of age become infected with HIV every day, most through mother-to-child transmission. In spite of recent progress in the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT), children account for more than 10% of all new HIV infections.

The confirmation of successful projects comes following the inaugural International Fund Advisory Board meeting held yesterday in Nairobi, Kenya. The Board is comprised of independent experts in the fields of HIV, sexual and reproductive health and child health including clinicians, members of non-governmental and multi-lateral organisations and people living with HIV.

Since calling for initial grant proposals at the end of March 2010, ViiV Healthcare has received over 750 proposals from organisations in 61 countries. Spanning all continents, 12 projects have been selected by the Board to receive funding based on each projects' ability to deliver well-evaluated, sustainable, community-based services and support.

Chair of the Board, Professor Catherine Peckham, Institute of Child Health in London, commented, "The projects we have selected as a Board will make a real difference to communities affected by HIV. Some test new models of working which may be worthy of a wider application, meaning that their success can be realised not only during the funding phases, but hopefully for many years to come."

Dr Dominique Limet, CEO of ViiV Healthcare commented, "Identifying and supporting initiatives that can help improve the lives of vulnerable populations is core to ViiV Healthcare's commitment to those affected by HIV and AIDS. We hope that the support provided by the Positive Action for Children Fund will make a real difference on the ground in the communities most affected by the epidemic, improving the lives of children and families and importantly contributing to our knowledge of what really works."

The 12 projects* that have been selected will focus on two key areas. The first group of projects will focus on the strengthening and integration of primary HIV prevention, HIV services and sexual and reproductive health services leading to improved access to and continuity of services for men and women at risk of HIV or living with HIV. The projects include (listed in no particular order):

1. Ntankah Village Women Common Initiative Group, Republic of Cameroon
2. Public Health Research Institute of India
3. Partners in Health, Lesotho
4. Women Friendly Initiative (WFI), Nigeria
5. International Medical Foundation (IMF) and the National Community of Women Living With HIV/AIDS in Uganda (NACWOLA), Uganda
6. Wakiso Integrated Rural Development Association (WIRDA), Uganda
7. Miroi Growers Cooperative Society, Uganda
8. Hodi, Zambia

The second group of projects will focus on the support of infants, children and adolescents living with HIV and their families within their communities, promoting a family-centred approach. The projects (listed in no particular order) are:

9. Rajasthan Network for People Living with HIV/AIDS (RNP+), India
10. Save the Children, Democratic Republic of Congo
11. Kenya AIDS Intervention Prevention Project Group (KAIPPG)
12. IPPF and Family Health Options Kenya

* subject to agreement with grantees

NOTES TO EDITORS
About the Positive Action for Children Fund Advisory Board
The independent Fund Advisory Board membership is drawn from the global HIV sector and community with strong representation from sub-Saharan Africa. The Board will meet at least annually to consider project funding under agreed programme areas and funding priorities. Membership comprises the following representatives:

1. Professor Catherine Peckham - Fund Board Chair, Professor of Paediatric Medicine, Institute of Child Health, London, UK
2. Ayorinde Ajayi, MD MPH; Path, USA
3. Florence Manguyu, Consultant Paediatrician and IAVI Advisor, Kenya
4. Alejandra Trossero, Senior HIV Officer, International Planned Parenthood Federation, Malaysia
5. Winnie Ssanyu-Sseruma, HIV Coordinator, Christian AID, UK
6. Frika Chia Iskandar, Independent Consultant on HIV/ AIDS, previous coordinator of WAPN+, Indonesia

About the Positive Action for Children Fund
The Positive Action for Children Fund was first announced in July 2009 and builds upon the foundation of the long-standing Positive Action programme, established in 1992. With an emphasis on community engagement, ViiV Healthcare's Positive Action programme will continue to support global efforts to address the challenges of HIV prevention, tackling stigma and discrimination, building capacity and treatment literacy.

Following extensive consultations with some of the sector's leading non-governmental organisations, practitioners and policy-makers in this field, the Fund focuses on grants that pursue the four elements of the World Health Organization's (WHO) strategic vision and comprehensive approach for addressing the mother-to-child transmission of HIV, under these four headings:

1. Increasing and improving primary prevention of HIV infection among women of childbearing age;
2. Delivering proper and equitable reproductive choices for people living with HIV/AIDS;
3. Interventions that prevent HIV transmission from a woman living with HIV to her infant; and
4. Improving the health and welfare of mothers living with HIV, their children and families by providing appropriate treatment, care and support.

ViiV Healthcare's Positive Action for Children Fund will have a targeted spending pattern; at least 80 percent will support projects focused on sub-Saharan Africa, while up to 20 percent may be dispersed to projects focused elsewhere. To qualify, at least 85 percent of the project’s budget must be spent in the targeted country.

About ViiV Healthcare
ViiV Healthcare is a global specialist HIV company established by GlaxoSmithKline (LSE: GSK.L) and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) to deliver advances in treatment and care for people living with HIV. Our aim is to take a deeper and broader interest in HIV/AIDS than any company has done before and then take a new approach to deliver effective and new HIV medicines as well as support communities affected by HIV.

For more information on the company, its management, portfolio, pipeline and commitment, please visit www.viivhealthcare.com.

Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking statements GlaxoSmithKline disclosure notice: Under the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, GSK cautions investors that any forward-looking statements or projections made by GSK, including those made in this announcement, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Factors that may affect GSK' s operations are described under 'Risk Factors' in the 'Business Review' in the company's Annual Report on Form 20-F for 2009.

Pfizer disclosure notice: Pfizer assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of new information or future events or developments.

This release contains forward-looking information about Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline and ViiV Healthcare and about the prospects of the companies, including revenues from in-line products and the potential benefits of product candidates that will be contributed to that company, as well as the potential financial impact of the transaction. Such information involves substantial risks and uncertainties including, among other things, decisions by regulatory authorities regarding whether and when to approve any drug applications that have been or may be filed for such product candidates as well as their decisions regarding labeling and other matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential of such product candidates; and competitive developments.

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ViiV Healthcare

ViiV Healthcare

ViiV Healthcare is a global specialist HIV company established in November 2009 by GlaxoSmithKline (LSE: GSK) and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) dedicated to delivering advances in treatment and care for people living with HIV and for people who are at risk of becoming infected with HIV. Shionogi joined in October 2012. The company's aim is to take a deeper and broader interest in HIV/AIDS than any company has done before and take a new approach to deliver effective and innovative medicines for HIV treatment and prevention, as well as support communities affected by HIV.

For more information on the company, its management, portfolio, pipeline and commitment, please visit www.viivhealthcare.com.

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