Save the Children and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) have teamed up to save one million children's lives in developing countries across Africa.

The programme will start in the Democractic Republic of Congo and Kenya before moving to other countries.

Sir Andrew Witty, CEO of GSK said: “A partnership of this scale gives us an opportunity to do something amazing – to save the lives of one million children, and to transform the lives of millions more. At GSK we are motivated by developing innovative life-saving medicines and getting them to the people that need them.

“By joining forces with Save the Children, we can amplify these efforts to create a new momentum for change and stop children dying from preventable diseases. I hope this partnership inspires GSK employees and sets a new standard for how companies and NGOs can work together towards a shared goal.”

The two partners want to focus on increasing access to health workers, medicines, vaccines, and better nutrition for the hardest to reach children, and those whose need is greatest.

GSK will accelerate the development of life-saving new medicines designed especially for children.

For example, the antiseptic chlorhexidine – commonly used in mouthwash – will be reformulated into a gel for cleansing the umbilical cord stump of newborn babies, with the potential to prevent thousands of deaths from infection during the first few weeks of life.

Save the Children and GSK will also work together to research and develop further medicines and treatments that can be adapted to tackle the causes of child mortality.

Justin Forsyth, Chief Executive of Save the Children said:

“This ground-breaking partnership involves both organisations working in genuinely new ways to save the lives of a million children.

"In the past, Save the Children may not have embarked on collaboration with a pharmaceutical company like GSK. But we believe we can make huge gains for children if we harness the power of GSK's innovation, research and global reach."